Methodist Church

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A church in a plain Gothic Revival style, comprising a rectangular nave and shallow transepts, with a semi-octagonal stair turret to one side of the entrance gable. Main entrance faces south.

South elevation: Main entrance gable is smooth cement rendered, lined and blocked, with projecting moulded plinth, and projecting moulded cornice to gable coping; projecting plain stringcourses, forming cills to windows, and at springing point of upper windows, render and plasterwork; all uniformly painted. Central entrance contains a pair of modern rectangular timber panelled doors surmounted by a plain fanlight with original gothic arched framing, recessed in a Gothic archway with moulded and stop-chamfered reveals containing circular colonnettes; moulded label over. Doorway flanked by single narrow lancets set in raised surrounds with moulded and stop-chamfered reveals, containing leaded lights with later storm-proof glazing inserted. Above entrance are four graduated lancets, with similar surrounds and glazing, surmounted by a small circular window in the apex of the gable.
Modern concrete doorstep leading onto a concrete ramp and approached by a flight of concrete steps bounded by cement rendered plinth walls and modern steel railings.

Set back to each side of entrance gable are a narrow bay to the right containing a tall lancet surmounted by a small circular window, and a semi-octagonal stair turret to the left, with walls rendered as previous including stringcourses with addition of dentil cornices to eaves. Each face of stair turret contains a tall narrow lancet as previous, above a quatrefoil-panelled roundel in a raised circular surround; roundel on canted face to front is covered by a later timber noticeboard. Moulded cast iron gutters to eaves of each side bay and return of entrance gable, with circular cast iron downpipes.

West elevation comprises the nave wall, containing three tall lancets similar to previous with the semi-octagonal stair turret projecting to the right and a shallow gabled transept projecting to the left. Transept gable contains a graduated triplet of lancets surmounted by a circular window in the apex. Roofs, wall render, rainwater goods and storm-proof glazing all as previous.

East elevation comprises the nave wall containing three tall lancets, rising to a higher gable to the left, with a shallow transept table projecting to the right.
Walls are smooth rendered without plinth, stringcourses or window surrounds; plain projecting stone cills; moulded cornice to nave but flush verges to transept gable; cast iron rainwater goods as previous. Raised gable to left contains a tall lancet surmounted by a circular window in apex; transept gable contains two lancets. Storm-glazing as previous.

North elevation comprises a plain rear gable smooth rendered and painted, with the track of lean-to projections now removed to make way for the modern hall complex. Cast iron rainwater goods to return sides of transepts at each extremity of main new gable.
Projecting from the rear gable at the right-hand side is a modern single storey red brick link block connecting with the modern halls complex; across the left-hand side of the rear gable is a modern steel fire escape stairway.

SETTING: The building stands on a corner site within the built-up area of the town, facing onto a side street at the front but set back slightly behind a low plinth boundary wall, which contains a modern open concrete ramp to the main entrance. West elevation faces onto the main road and a deep paved pedestrian area, set back from it behind a low plinth boundary wall which contains an open paved area. Plinth wall smooth cement rendered.
To the rear stands a two-storey flat-roofed modern church hall complex in red brick connected to the rear of the church by a low single storey red brick link block.
East elevation overlooks a side yard, hard surfaced, containing some mature trees, bounded by an old basalt rubble wall to the east, a modern halls complex to the north, and entered by a set of modern iron railings and gates to the south, abutting the entrance gable of the church.

Historical information

Built in 1882-4 to the design of Samuel P. Close, architect; tenders invited 1 April 1882; church opened 18 June 1884; organ built by Lewis & Co of London, installed 1907.
Lucarne dormers in stair turret removed in mid-1980s; church listed in 1991; ramp access added to main entrance front, storm-glazing inserted in windows, and gallery remodelled, all in 1990s. Hall complex to rear built 1969. Church built to replace an earlier Methodist church on the site which was built in 1810-12. The building stands within the area of a scheduled monument, no. ANT52:60.

References – Primary Sources
1. Belfast News-Letter, 1 April 1882 (tenders invited).
2. OS Map 1884, Co Antrim 52.
3. Original photograph, c 1920, in possession of W.J. McAlister in 1989.

Secondary Sources
1. Ordnance Survey Memoirs of Ireland, Vol 37: Parishes of County Antrim XIV, 1832, 1839-40 (Belfast, 1996), p 27 (refers to previous church on the site).
2. UAHS, Carrickfergus (Belfast, 1980), p 22 (but gives an erroneous date of 1838).
3. S. Speers, Under the big lamp: Historic photographs of the county and town of Carrickfergus (Belfast, 1989), p 50 (reproduces an original photograph, c 1920, in possession of W.J. McAlister).
4. P. Larmour, 'A worthy Victorian architect' (Samuel P. Close 1842-1925), Perspective (The Journal of the RSUA), Vol 6, No 5, May/June 1998, pp 72-75.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

This is a late 19th century church in Gothic Revival style designed by a well-known local architect, Samuel P. Close of Carrickfergus, but it is one of his least ambitious church designs, comparatively plain in detail and finish, with stringcourses confined to two elevations only. It has furthermore now lost a number of original features and some of its original character. The close proximity of its modern hall complex to the rear, and modern buildings adjacent to the east and south, combined with other alterations and additions, also detracts from the character of the original setting.