{"id":2886,"date":"2015-02-08T17:25:46","date_gmt":"2015-02-08T17:25:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/?page_id=2886"},"modified":"2015-08-07T16:42:05","modified_gmt":"2015-08-07T16:42:05","slug":"protestant-nonconformity-in-whetstone","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/?page_id=2886","title":{"rendered":"Protestant Nonconformity in Whetstone"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_3385\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3385\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-baptist2.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-3385\" src=\"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-baptist2-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Whetstone Baptist Church \" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-baptist2-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-baptist2-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-baptist2.jpg 1107w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3385\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Whetstone Baptist Church (1909)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3386\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3386\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational1.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-3386\" src=\"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational1-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Former Congregational chapel at Whetstone\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational1-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational1-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational1.jpg 1117w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3386\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Former Congregational chapel at Whetstone<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3387\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3387\" style=\"width: 225px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational2.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-3387\" src=\"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational2-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"Whetstone URC\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational2-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational2.jpg 561w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3387\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Whetstone URC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3388\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3388\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational2a.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-3388\" src=\"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational2a-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Whetstone URC interior view\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational2a-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational2a-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-congregational2a.jpg 1027w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3388\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Whetstone URC interior view<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3389\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3389\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-baptist1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-3389\" src=\"http:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-baptist1-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Former Whetstone Baptist Chapel \" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-baptist1-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-baptist1-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/whetstone-baptist1.jpg 1030w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3389\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Former Whetstone Baptist Chapel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Whetstone is a village in\u00a0south Leicestershire. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Baptists and Independents were the two predominant non-conformist denominations in the village, arriving early in the eighteenth century. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The earliest meeting house recorded was in 1717, with two being established in that year at the homes of dissenters. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Ten more religious meeting places were established before 1800 \u2013 all at the homes of dissenters &#8211; of which only one (erected in 1758) specifies a denomination, namely Baptist.<\/span><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftn1\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[1]<\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000;\"> Nonetheless, these are high figures compared with other villages in Leicestershire.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><b><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Baptists<\/span><\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Baptists are mentioned\u00a0in the meeting house census of 1829, which counted them at 140.<\/span><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftn2\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[2]<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">By the time of the religious census of 1851, Baptists were attending a purpose-built chapel erected in 1843. This chapel had 60 free seats and 318 \u2018other\u2019 sittings; on the day of the census there were sixty worshippers present at the afternoon service and 130 in the evening. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The chapel had a Sunday school, with attendance recorded at eighty.<\/span><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftn3\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[3]<\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000;\"> A new chapel was built in 1855, with room for 270 worshippers, and rebuilt in 1911 at a cost of \u00a31,700. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The new, rebuilt, chapel on King Street was able to accommodate 350 worshippers.<\/span><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftn4\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[4]<\/span><\/a>\u00a0The building still stands (in 2015) but is used for industrial storage.<\/p>\n<p>A third chapel, also on King Street, was built in 1909. The congregation still meets (in 2015), but their chapel is to be sold and a new church centre built on a site in Cambridge Road to the south of the village.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Independents<\/span><\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The number of Independents in the village was counted at 270 on the 1829 meeting house return.<\/span><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftn5\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[5]<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">At the time of the 1851 religious census, they were attending a chapel that was erected \u2018before 1800\u2019. This chapel had room to seat 200 worshippers, and on the day of the census there were twenty people present at the morning service, fifty-four in the afternoon and twelve in the evening.<\/span><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftn6\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[6]<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">A new chapel was erected on King Street after this date, containing 200 sittings, although the sources disagree on the actual date of erection.<\/span><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftn7\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[7]<\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000;\"> This was recorded as 1858 in the trade directory of 1908, and 1863 in the trade directory of 1881.<\/span><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftn8\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[8]<\/span><\/a>\u00a0By then it was known as the Congregational chapel. There is a date stone on the building,\u00a0which\u00a0looks like it has been changed from 1805 to 1865. This chapel has since been converted into a private house.<\/p>\n<p>A new, larger,\u00a0chapel was built was built in 1905 on High Street, to replace the earlier building. It\u00a0is known today as Whetstone United Reformed Church, and is still in use.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Return to <\/strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/?page_id=389\"><strong>Protestant Nonconformity: A-Z<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div><br clear=\"all\" \/><\/p>\n<hr align=\"left\" size=\"1\" width=\"33%\" \/>\n<div>\n<p><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftnref1\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[1]<\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\"> ROLLR, QS 44\/2\/27.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftnref2\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[2]<\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\"> ROLLR, QS 95\/2\/1\/30.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftnref3\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[3]<\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\"> TNA, HO 129\/411\/44.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftnref4\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[4]<\/span><\/a><i><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Kelly\u2019s Dir.<\/span><\/i><span style=\"color: #000000;\"> (1908) p. 591; <\/span><i><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Kelly\u2019s Dir.<\/span><\/i><span style=\"color: #000000;\"> (1916) p. 644<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftnref5\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[5]<\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\"> ROLLR, QS 95\/2\/1\/30<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftnref6\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[6]<\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\"> TNA, HO 129\/411\/29.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftnref7\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[7]<\/span><\/a><i><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\">Kelly\u2019s Dir.<\/span><\/i><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\"> (1908) p. 591.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><a title=\"\" href=\"file:\/\/\/C:\/Users\/VCH\/Documents\/WIP\/chapel%20pages%20online\/Whetstone%20chapels%20done.docx#_ftnref8\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">[8]<\/span><\/a><i><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\">Kelly\u2019s Dir.<\/span><\/i><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\"> (1881), p.726; <\/span><i><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\">Kelly\u2019s Dir.<\/span><\/i><span style=\"color: #000000; font-size: small;\"> (1908) p. 591.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Whetstone is a village in\u00a0south Leicestershire. Baptists and Independents were the two predominant non-conformist denominations in the village, arriving early in the eighteenth century. The earliest meeting house recorded was in 1717, with two being established in that year at the homes of dissenters. Ten more religious meeting places were established before 1800 \u2013 all [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2886","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2886","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2886"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2886\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3383,"href":"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2886\/revisions\/3383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/leicestershirehistory.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2886"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}