Eglwys y Bedyddwyr Ruthin

Location

Located on the NW side of Park Road approx 100m NW of Pont Howkin.

History

Baptist chapel of 1934 designed by S. Colwyn-Foulkes in an unusual idiom reminiscent of Baltic modernism of the period.

Exterior

Chapel, squared grey limestone facade and rubble stone side walls under roof of small slates. Facade has crow-stepped gable topped by a finial like a tiny bellcote with lancet opening. Small apex roundel below, no window but tall pointed doorway with rock-faced voussoirs and jambs. Four stone steps up with metal rails. Inset yellow stone surround to double board doors and tympanum with pointed recessed panel inscribed `Capel y Bedyddwyr 1934'.
Sides have modernist metal windows under low eaves, 4 large square windows, with one smaller and one very small each side of the front wall. To the rear of each side a roughcast lean-to porch on flanks of a roughcast rear vestry which has lean-to hipped roof and a rear wall broad metal window flanked by a narrow one each side.

Interior

Unusual interior with 4-bay roof of blue-painted steel trusses carried low into the walls and with parabolic arch under flat collar, linked by 2 diagonal struts. The roof itself has triple purlins, exposed rafters with blue-painted plaster between, and is ceiled at level of top purlin with exposed collar-rafters. Plain lobby with non-accessible gallery space over and door each side, timber cornice linking door heads, and plain painted plaster above. Windows have Romanesque miniature arcades 2-bay to first window each side and 5-bay to the next 3. White-painted column shafts with simple Romanesque-type capitals and unmoulded arches. Single block of pews with aisles down side walls, raked to rear, the pews with panel backs and shaped bench-ends, in pale American oak. Curtained low rail to raised dais in front of pulpit platform. Platform also in pale oak is raised with steps up each side. Long panelled front, raised slightly for centre pulpit, and matching panelled back with bench seat. Back infills base of a tall end-wall cambered-headed recess, recessed in 2 steps. Two plain arched doors in end wall to vestry. Vestry has plain flat ceiling and similar cambered-headed recess on end wall.

Reason for designation

Included for its architectural interest as an exceptional design of the inter-war period, by one of the leading C20 Welsh architects.