Commemorative plaque 39314

This blue commemorative plaque records: Southwell Baptist Church This impressive Georgian building was originally the Southwell Parish Workhouse, built in 1808. In 1839 members of the Baptist Church bought this building from the Poor Law Guardians for £1,450. This sum included the conversion of the Workhouse to a Chapel and Manse for the Pastor. Before 1839 there had been a Baptist Church in the town, centred in Westhorpe, where a barn was used for services. An adjacent piece of land was used for burials. Today the chapel is used for many community activities as well as for worship. Recorded plaque organisation: Heritage Lottery Fund.

Southwell Baptist Church, originally constructed as a parish workhouse in 1808, became a significant religious and community center after its conversion to a Baptist chapel in 1839, reflecting the growth and adaptation of nonconformist worship spaces in Victorian England.