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A very brief history:
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Salem Methodist Church has its roots in one of the early breakaway movements from Wesleyan Methodism after John Wesley died. By the early years of the nineteenth century the Methodist New Connexion had grown mainly in the north and midlands. Mr Thomas Walker opened up his house (more or less opposite what is now St. Saviour's Church) where he started a Sunday School. Sunday Schools really were schools on Sundays - the curriculum would include reading and writing and some simple sums as well as Biblical stories. Worship took place during the week until 1830 when the Circuit Plan showed Sunday services at Salem for the first time. By 1827 a larger house was needed and provided. By 1838 a chapel was built on the current site but facing onto Lord Street.
St Saviour's was built in 1850 just down the hill from Salem. However, by the 1870s further expansion was necessary at Salem - the chapel was demolished and rebuilt in 1874. Within a couple of years the Sunday School has 220 scholars and 36 teachers. Even when the "Board School" was built and staffed the first headmaster was associated with Salem and several reachers over the years became stalwarts at the chapel as well. All this involvement in youth education lead to expansion of the premises - several houses and the old Catholic Church (known affectionately as "the Institute")were bought and adapted.
The growth of the area os Smallthorne was reflected in the growth in this work. By the early years of the 20th Century over 500 scholars were on the books. Although the emphasis of this work has now changed and the numbers fallen, the work still goes on. For three evenings, two mornings and two afternoons each week the noise of youngsters enjoying the youth activities of Salem Methodist Church is to be heard (see the Weekly Programme for details). So for over 180 years Salem Methodist Church has been involved in educating the children of the area - fifty of those years before the "Board School" came into being.
Concern for the poor has always been a part of church life. Two examples of Salem's involvement are particularly noteworthy:
In 1912 the local miners went on strike and the Sunday School was opened daily for "Public Reading and Recreation". Over 200 men took up this opportunity to use their time wisely during the troubles. Also:
In recent years the Smallthorne "Live at Home Scheme" was set up as an initiative to make life more bearable for the elderly in the community and enable them to still feel part of it. The scheme is still runnning (now known as the Stoke North Live at Home Scheme) with leaders from the local community as well as church members.
The 21st century has brought a new challenge for us - government legislation! Stringent Fire Regulations and the Disability Discrimination Act have forced us to review the quality of our premises. In 1874 none of these things were dreamt about let alone planned for! Twelve rooms on seven different floor levels is not good enough for today's rules. Our current challenge is to do what our forebears did in 1874 - demolish and rebuild a new chapel. a scheme estimated to cost around £450,000 has been drawn up and we have already raised £39,500 towards it. we are expected to raise £137,000 ourselves and £206,000 from Public Funding and Charitable Trusts - the rest will be provided from Methodist Church sources nationally. Our Mission Statement sums up our resolve:
"Salem Methodist Church seeks to promote the spiritual, physical and educatioanl well-being of all in the community of Smallthorne and neighbouring areas.
We seek achieve this by:
a) The provision of a suitable new multi-purpose building and;
b) The establishment of an inter-agency support network of community groups and individuals."
If you feel you want to and can help us in any way please contact either the Minister or Mr Gary Bennett(see the contacts page).
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