The Christian Meeting House on Rodney Street
The Christian Meeting House, Rodney Street, Wigan
By Wigan Local History and Heritage Society for the King Street Heritage Action Zone
The Christian Meeting House in Rodney Street was built in 1858, as recorded on the stone on the front of the building, as seen above and was built by Mr Fairclough of King Street. It was initially used by the Church of Christ which was established in America by Alexander Campbell a Scottish emigrant. The Wigan congregation was started independently in the area in 1841 by Timothy Coop (1817-1887) the garment manufacturer and joint proprietor of the garment factory on Dorning Street.
The laying of the foundation stone of the New Christian Meeting House was reported in the Wigan Observer and District Advertiser on 2 July 1858 as being laid by Mr John Corf of Millgate “without any preface or ceremony. A bottle having been deposited with it, containing a paper scroll with a script as noted in the linked article. Other publications included were The British Millennial Harbinger, The Christian Advocate, The Sunbeam and copies of the Wigan Observer and Examiner”.
The building hit the headlines in 1860 following the explosion of a locomotive boiler on the nearby Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway line. A large portion of the boiler was blown through the air, over the dispensary, Public Hall to the Christian Meeting House. Where it dropped through the roof into an upper room of the building. The damage was considerable but thankfully no one was injured. (Shields Gazette, 12 July 1860).
During the 1990’s Occasions restaurant was based in the building, as can be seen in the GOAD map* of 1995. In January 1992 the Manchester Evening News reported that Beverley Yates had bought the building and used her design skills to transform it to “All Things American” including genuine Stetson hats, saddles and blank firing guns, a 25-foot jet aircraft wing and £10,000 Harley Davidson motorbike.
We have been unable to find the date of closure, we do know the building closed for worship in 1989 and in 1997 permission was given for change of use of first floor from retail to a restaurant. Prior to 2021 it was a gin bar, The Bar@WN1 4 Rodney Street which is now closed.
The building seen below currently stands empty and is believed to still have some of the original features.
The Christian Meeting House, Rodney Street
The Christian Meeting House, “News from the Archives” article in Past Forward 1995
*A Goad map (or Goad fire insurance plan) is a highly detailed, large-scale map of British and foreign towns created by Charles E. Goad Ltd from 1885 to 1970. Originally designed for insurance companies to assess fire risks, these maps show building materials, usage (e.g., shops, factories), heights, and property boundaries.
Sources:
Nicholas Webb, Archivist
Archives: Wigan and Leigh
Findmypast
Past Forward 1995
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