Anonymous chapel v

This is another postcard sent in by Mark Graham.  It shows a young men’s group lined up outside a Primitive Methodist chapel  entrance.

One clue is that the minister is named on the notice board as the Rev G Hunt.  In our obituaries for Primitive Methodist ministers, we only have one Rev Hunt – Rev German Hunt (1859 – 1934). He served from 1880 – 1925 almost exclusively in Lancashire and Yorkshire circuits.  That would fit with the terraced housing in the background of the picture.  Mind you that still leaves quite a lot of possibilities.

We asked “Can you help?” and John Anderson cracked it!

Rising to the challenge John tracked it down as the 1896 Sunday School and later church with hexagonal tower at the corner of Butler Green and Coalshaw Green Road in Chadderton, Oldham. Originally known as Washbrook Primitive Methodist Church, it became simply Washbrook Methodist Church and latterly South Chadderton Methodist Church.  Door, doorway and decorative stonework are identical. Brilliant work John!

Source – “The Story of Primitive Methodism in Washbrook 1862-1915” published 1916 by E J Wildgoose, Printer, Oldham and Wikipedia!