EASTERTON METHODIST [Wesleyan] CHURCH 1868-1984
History
As the introduction to the Souvenir Brochure marking the Centenary of the chapel says, little is known to have been recorded about the early history of Methodism in Easterton, but one can be sure that a Methodist society existed in the village well before the chapel was built. The society is believed to have come into being through the ministry of David Saunders, known as ‘theshepherd of Salisbury Plain’, who, after his own conversion through thetravelling preachers connected with Rev John Wesley, became an evangelist himself in this part of Wiltshire. This saintly man was known and loved as he made his way from village to village establishing Methodist classes where people would gather to hear the Bible read andprayer said. I was told as a child that such a class met in the timbered cottage opposite Halstead Farm where a David Draper lived. People came to his house not only for Bible reading and prayer but to hear news from the local paper as not everyone could read and write.
As the Methodist society in Easterton grew the members wanted a place of their own in which to meet and worship and in 1868 this came about with the building and opening of the chapel in the main street. Similar chapels were built at Woodborough, Wedhampton, All Cannings, Horton, Tinhead and later at Littleton Pannell through the support of Mr Thomas Holloway and his family of West Lavington who became influential Methodists
Among the founding members of the chapel were my great-grandparents John Powell Sainsbury and his wife Elizabeth Clara (nee Giddings) who had been recently married at the Independent Chapel, Market Lavington, and who were living at ‘Heath Ground’ The Sands. It is possible that their parents were also members of the new chapel as non-conformity was very strong in the Sainsbury and Giddings families. My grandmother, Elizabeth Ann Godden, was the oldest of the eleven children to be born to John and Elizabeth, at ‘Heath Ground’ on 14th May 1869 and she must have been one of the first to be baptised at the new chapel. This is recorded in the Baptism Register of the Wesleyan Methodist Church in Devizes (entry 202) – there being no register at that time at Easterton. The register is now kept in the safe at St Andrew’s Methodist-United Reformed Church, Long Street, Devizes.
My great-grandparents moved from ‘Heath Ground’ to Fiddington Farm at the bottom of Parham Lane, Market Lavington, where they lived and farmed until the Great Western Railway line was laid. This cut through the orchard close to the house which had to be demolished. John and Elizabeth with the younger members of the family then moved to Manor Farm, Chirton. Until this happened, the family worshipped at the Independent Chapel Market Lavington, (formerly a Quaker Meeting House) on Sunday mornings and the children attended the Sunday School in the afternoon, but in the evening the whole family worshipped at the new Methodist Chapel, Easterton.
Although the family moved to Chirton, it maintained close links with Easterton Methodist Chapel and when John and Elizabeth Sainsbury died in 1909 and 1911, both on 15th October, they were brought back to be buried in the non-conformist (Free Church) cemetery in The Drove, now Easterton cemetery. Several of the Sainsbury children maintained close links with the chapel and one, William Sainsbury, who farmed at Folly Farm before moving to Calne was a trustee until he died in 1953.
It was when my grandparents, William James and Elizabeth Ann Godden retired from the bakery which they owned in New Park Street, Devizes, and came to live at Paxton Cottage, Kings Road, Easterton, in 1927, that once more members of the family were resident in the village and became very active in the life and ministry of the chapel. My grandmother, who loved Easterton and had always wanted to return, felt that she had come home. Until she died in 1948 she, and my parents, Harold and Edith Godden, who had taken over the bakery in Devizes, became very loyal members following in the footsteps of John and Elizabeth Sainsbury before them.
Until 1928 all activities were confined to the chapel. Additional space was needed to meet the needs of a large Sunday School and other weekday activities. As the chapel had only the ground it stood on, the trustees approached Mr Percy Bullock, whose bakery was immediately behind, to see if he would sell a piece of land on which a schoolroom could be built. This he agreed to and the village builder, Mr Fred Burgess, was given the task of providing the chapel with the extra accommodation it needed. This included a small kitchen and toilet, neither of which had running water. Such luxury was still years away in Easterton.
PERSONAL MEMORIES 1935-1984
The new Easterton chapel became part of the Wesleyan Methodist circuit, known eventually as the Wiltshire Methodist Mission Circuit, under the direction of the Superintendent minister based in Chippenham, and the local minister who lived in Devizes. Later a Lay Pastor, who lived at Market Lavington, had pastoral responsibility for the churches from Woodborough to Tinhead and would cycle many miles to conduct worship on Sundays and to care for his ‘flock’ during the week. When the weekly Sunday evening service was not led by the minister, who made a quarterly visit from Devizes, or the Lay Pastor, services were conducted by accredited local preachers. Many of these were men and women in local employment who, having heard the ‘call to preach’, had been trained and recognised. Among those I remember well from my childhood days were: Tom Bratchell (a shepherd) from Wedhampton; Tom Smith (a backsmith) from Stanton St Bernard; Leonard Painter (a nurseryman) Devizes; and Charlie Maslen (a builder) Devizes, to mention but a few. On dark winter nights during the Second World War when there was no transport and lighting had to be kept to a minimum, Tom Smith would cycle to lead worship often arriving soaked by the rain but with a glow on his face as he led the congregation in worship.
In the early days, hymn singing was either unaccompanied or led by a violinist. My own grandfather, Will Godden, was one who helped in this way. Later, an American organ was bought, and Mr Ewart Bolwell, of Eastcott, or Mrs Kathleen Urwin of Market Lavington, accompanied the hymns. The schoolroom became a necessity because of the large Sunday School and other weekday activities. The Superintendent of the Sunday School for many years until her death in December 1946 was Mrs Mary Jane Pollard, a WW1 widow who lived in ‘Cartref’ the end cottage of four along from the chapel. Mary devoted herself to the work among the children of the village, and with her assistants, Mrs Winnie Still and Mr Ewart Bolwell, made Sunday afternoons an enjoyable experience using the very limited resources of those days.
The Brick Laying in the Summer of 1928 was a great occasion as the photographs taken to record the event clearly show. The giving was truly sacrificial as no doubt was that of those who gave towards the building of the chapel sixty years before. Among those who supported and contributed towards the cost was Mr Samuel Moore whose Jam Factory gave employment to many in the village. He is to be seen sitting in the front row of the picture taken in front of the chapel.
My mother took me to Sunday School for the first time in September 1938 when I was three. I joined the Beginners Department and while I have only the vaguest memories of those days I know I was soon singing the Cliff College chorus “I am H A P P Y, I am H A P P Y, I know I am, I’m sure I am, I’m H A P P Y” And happy I was. I never needed any encouragement to go on a Sunday afternoon, although I must admit I found some of the bigger boys intimidating and sometimes would run as fast as I could to get back to my grandmother’s house afterwards. I was about 8 when I began to attend the evening service as well as Sunday School and always sat with Mary Pollard on the back pew rather than with my grandmother and parents. Very often during the sermon Mrs Pollard would pass a sweet to any child sitting with her – a real treat as these were rationed during the War.
The Second World War inevitably changed life in Easterton as it did throughout the country. Evacuees from London had to be accommodated in the village and anyone who had space was expected to take in children who had been brought to the country for their own safety. Many of the youngsters had never been outside London before and life in a Wiltshire village was alien to them. Some children settled in well and life-long friendships were made. 0thers were difficult and disruptive as a result of separation from their families which sometimes caused problems for those looking after them. The village school under its head teacher, Miss Gladys Windo, had only two class rooms and was full to overflowing. The chapel schoolroom was therefore commandeered to provide extra space. Both of the village churches suddenly found their Sunday schools doubling in size. Mary Pollard, with her two assistants, found that the invasion of new children turned some Sunday afternoons into nothing more than crowd control. One Sunday, school had to be abandoned when the fumes from burning rubber, put on the stove by some of the East End youngsters sent everyone running to the door for fresh air
There were three occasions which were very special: the Sunday school Anniversary, held in May, the Harvest Festival in September and the Christmas Carol Service and tea followed with games and the presentation of a book, the size of which seem to depend on your age and how many stars you had in the attendance register. The presentation was usually performed by Mrs Stewart, the wife of a retired Colonel, who lived in the village. We began practising for the Anniversary several months beforehand. For this Mrs Urwin taught us new hymns for the occasion. Poems and sketches had to be learned and Bible readings read with loud clear voices from the pulpit. A special preacher was invited for the great day – one who could be entertaining in the ‘slot’ given to them and who could be relied upon to say how smart we looked and how well we had done. This accolade was important, as the congregation in the afternoon was largely made up of the Sunday School from the Congregational Church, Market Lavington, under their superintendent, a local butcher, with whom there was always a certain amount of friendly rivalry as we attended their anniversary two weeks later.
Harvest Festivals were always a great occasion and even in wartime it was surprising where all the produce came from. The Spencer family at Halstead Farm which adjoined the chapel, always gave sheaves of corn, Moore’s factory always gave pots of jam, Mr Shepherd, one of the village bakers, made a harvest loaf, usually in the shape of a sheaf, and the owners of ‘The Kestrels’, a large house with a beautiful walled garden, gave bunches of grapes grown in the greenhouses. It was the only time in the year that I saw grapes and they were always hung from the pulpit reading desk in full view of the congregation. They made my mouth water. Vegetables and flowers decorated every part of the chapel (I can smell them now) but on the communion table there was always placed, in addition to the loaf, a glass of water and a piece of coal. The afternoon service was another occasion when the Congregational Sunday School joined us while in the evening, many, who rarely attended the chapel, came to sing their favourite harvest hymns and give nodding thanks to Almighty God for his goodness.
The climax to the Festival came on the Monday evening when all the produce displayed in the chapel was brought into the school room to be sold. It was the biggest event in the year to raise funds for the upkeep of the premises. After the opening hymn and prayer, battle commenced. Mr Hill, a preacher from Market Lavington, who kept a fish and chip shop, was the auctioneer, and it was his job to draw out from the purses of those present their last penny for every flower, fruit and vegetable in the place. His banter was great entertainment and being a marvellous salesman we all waited with bated breath to see how much he could get someone to pay for the GRAPES. Bidding would start around two shillings (20p) a bunch and by sixpences could fetch fifteen shillings (75p) but that was unusual. Mr Hill would be duly thanked and the chapel members and friends would make their way home with bags as full of produce as the ones that many had carried the produce there in the first place. It was always a wonderful evening when country people of all ages enjoyed themselves and the treasurer could rest assured that the coal for the chapel stoves and the electric light bill (no longer oil lamps) could be paid for.
Not that a great deal of electricity was used as during the War lighting was kept to a minimum. The top half of the windows in the chapel were permanently blacked out while the lower half had black curtains which were drawn across at night. There was very little street lighting, car headlights were masked, and all road signs were removed. The village sign EASTERTON was removed for the duration of the War.
A midweek meeting was held each Wednesday afternoon. ‘Women’s Own’ was a popular and well supported occasion and brought together a cross- section of ladies for what was essentially a devotional meeting. Speakers came from neighbouring churches and sometimes a soloist would make a musical contribution. Mrs Ada Gauntlett was the pianist and sometimes she would accompany herself in singing one of her favourite hymns or songs. My grandmother organised a savings club and many members put by 6 pence a week which my grandmother would take to the Somerset and Wilts Building Society in Devizes on a Thursday. Members then withdrew their savings at Christmas to help buy presents and extras. During the summer, if the weather was fine, the meeting would be held on her lawn at Paxton Cottage. There the perfume of roses combined with the smell of strawberry jam from the factory gave a memorable odour. When staying at Paxton during the school holidays I attended these meetings and well remember many of those who attended.
After my grandmother died in December 1948, my parents, Harold and Edith, continued to worship at Easterton, taking an active part in the continuing life of the chapel. Mrs Still became Superintendent of the Sunday School assisted by Mr and Mrs Lewis who had come to live at the former vicarage. They were great workers and were largely responsible for the Centenary arrangements in 1968. I, and another young local preacher from Devizes, Martin Broadbent, regularly took the Sunday evening service until we left the area to train for the ordained ministry. By the beginning of the 1980s, membership had decreased and attendance had declined due to deaths and old age. The painful decision to close the chapel was taken and the date set was the last Sunday in January 1984. Sadly, my father, Harold, died very suddenly on the 18th January, so the last service which I, the great-grandson of two of the founding members, was asked to take was also a celebration of my father’s life. My mother, Edith, who was the Communion Steward, carried out her last duty in seeing all was ready by preparing the Table so that we could eat and drink in anticipation of the heavenly banquet. The chapel had served its purpose. It was now to become another kind of family home.
Vernon Godden 1.7.2017