Our Church History
Allerton Presbyterian / United Reformed Church -The First 25 Years
In the year of anniversaries and jubilees we must not overlook the fact that our “church on the corner” is reaching a milestone this year, 2022 too. Not only did the Queen celebrated 70 years on the throne and the United Reformed Church 50 years since its formation, Allerton was that year 90 years old. This is not so old, as churches go, and until very recently we had members who were around from that time, 1932. However, much has changed in those nine decades and, aided by a copy of the silver anniversary commemorative booklet from 1957, it might be of interest to take a look back to our beginnings as the “church on the corner”.
Some will be aware that our roots were founded in Canning Street, where a Presbyterian church had stood since 1844. However, by 1929, that church was facing dwindling congregations, had financial struggles and its future was uncertain. The Liverpool Presbytery made the suggestion that the church be closed, sold and re-located to a proposed new site in Allerton. At that time, the newly-laid Mather Avenue passed through open fields as far as the then brand-new Springwood Estate. Booker Avenue was Booker’s Lane and there was just a footpath from Cressington, over a narrow bridge at the railway line and on up to the” old” Allerton Road at Yew Tree Lane. Three churches existed in the area – Mossley Hill, All Hallows and All Souls’, Springwood, all C of E; there was no non-conformist church. So, when the City Council offered the site to the Presbytery it was considered too good an offer to miss.
And so, it came to be that the Canning Street building was sold to the German Evangelical Church for £4071 and the proceeds put toward the £14,791 cost of the new church. Not included in the sale were the organ, pulpit, communion table, front, choir stalls and some other items which were relocated to Allerton. For two years, the old building was shared until the last Presbyterian service took place on 23rd October, 1932.
With its foundation stone having been laid on14th December 1931, the new church was finally completed and the first act of worship held on Friday, 28th October 1932, led by the Moderator of the Church of Scotland, the Rt Revd. Hugh R Mackintosh. With the calling of the first minister in 1932, the Revd. Cyril Marvin, full activity really commenced. That the first years of the church were so successful is down to his ‘eloquent preaching, his organising ability and his friendliness to all and sundry’, greatly helped by his wife who took a leading part in all the “women’s activities”.
Mr Marvin served until 1940, accepting a call from St George’s, Blackburn, to be replaced by Revd. W P Hancock whose ministry was characterised by “an extraordinary capacity for pastoral care”, especially valuable during those difficult and dangerous war years. Evening services in the winter months were held in the afternoon to comply with blackout regulations, with some experiments being made to hold evening services by moonlight.
On the eve of WWII, an agreement was reached with Mount Pleasant church for them to be incorporated into the congregation at Allerton and in April 1939 certain historical and memorial monuments as well as some communion plate and furniture were handed over to be incorporated into a special room, to be called the Mount Pleasant Memorial Hall. A gift of £1000 was also endowed from the Mount Pleasant Trustees to be offset against the building debt still owed by Allerton.
Serving throughout the war and moving on in 1947, Mr Hancock was succeeded by Revd. Evan Harries-Rees, who took on the considerable task of building up and consolidating the membership after the dislocation of the war. With a considerable increase in the surrounding population due to expanding housing development, Mr Harries-Rees made his presence felt by his “kindness and readiness to help anybody in the neighbourhood. Added to his natural ability to preach lucid and thoughtful sermons was his … knowledge and love of music”. With his calling to Hove in 1957, he could well look back on his ministry as being very fruitful. There were 546 members on the roll, an increase of over 300 since before the war.
The real growth of the church could also be measured in the number of church-based activities which made Allerton a “real centre of Christian fellowship and work”. Listed in the 1957 commemorative booklet were: - The Women’s Work Party, the Women’s Missionary Association, the Women’s Home Church Association, the Guild of Friendship, the Mothers of Young Children Group, the Fellowship of Youth, (meeting at the Manse), a Prayer Meeting, a Bible Study Group, the Young Worshippers’ League, (numbering around 100 at morning services!) and, the largest organisation of all, the “fully graded” Sunday School. With around 360 children and at one time having 52 officers and teachers, its organisation was a prodigious task for its Superintendent Mr George Tweedie. Around two-thirds of the children had no other connection to the church yet they were regular prize winners in Temperance Knowledge and Scripture Knowledge examinations as well as in the Sunday School Union Bible Knowledge Quiz.
As one might also expect, Allerton possessed a fine musical heritage and tradition with the Church Choir, Male Voice Choir and Choral Society developed under the leadership of Mr Samuel Hughes, organist for almost forty years since his Canning Street days in 1926. Eventually succeeded in 1947 by Mrs G Adams as organist and Mr D Simon as choirmaster, the choir, conducted by the minister himself, went from strength to strength until in 1957, so they said, “few churches on Merseyside have so good a choir”. They often gave concerts ranging in scope from Stainer’s Crucifixion to Merrie England and even Tom Jones.
In our first 25 years, three members entered ministry. The Revd. David Marsden became the minister at Christ Church Co Durham; Pastor Wellwood A Adam ministered to the United Church of Canada in Alberta and Pastor Walter T Wagg did likewise at the Salem Welsh Presbyterian church in Slatington, Pennsylvania, USA.
Beyond the worship sphere there was also the Allerton Players, an offshoot before the war of the Young People’s Society. This then became the Dramatic Society after the war and the church benefitted from not only having a focus for a stream of talented actors and actresses, (when there was such a thing as ‘actresses’) but also skilful producers and stage hands and set builders. Not to be overlooked, either, is the financial benefit which accrued from their productions.
And, there must also be mentioned the Girl Guides founded here in 1934 and led from 1938 by ‘Captain’ Miss Margaret Whyte (the first person to join Allerton by profession of faith) and the Brownies under the leadership of ‘Brown Owl’ Miss Margaret Dean, both lifetime worshippers at Allerton until their passing. The Boys’ Club eventually gave way to a Scout Troop and a Wolf Cub pack in 1942 – led by Wellwood Adam.
The church was overseen by ‘Session’ (now known as Elders) which in 1957 numbered some twenty-six, all men so far as the record shows. Still well remembered, by me at least, are Sid Alexander, Bob Holmes, Tom Munce, Robert Rees-Roberts, Dr Bob Thompson and David Snowdon. In addition, there was also a Committee of Management looking after fabric and finance with George Tweedie being at one time Treasurer, Session Clerk, Convenor of the Fabric Committee as well as Sunday School Superintendent until his death in 1943. The church Magazine was for years edited by Wellwood Adam and, eventually, by Gordon Henretty, also well remembered.
The First Twenty-Five Years at Allerton were momentous in their achievement and service, from the laying of the foundation stone to the attainment of the thriving, healthy church reported her in 1957. The second twenty-five years commenced with the induction of Revd Harold Springbett on 20th October 1957. On we go ... Continued..........
Allerton Presbyterian / United Reformed Church - Our 90th Anniversary
With our foundation stone having been laid on14th December 1931, and the church being finally completed ten months later, the first act of worship on this site was held on Friday, 28th October 1932, which makes the end of this month our 90th Anniversary.
Looking back to the 25th anniversary in 1957 (q.v. last month’s Messenger), the second twenty-five years commenced with the induction of Revd Harold Springbett from Scunthorpe, on 20th October. Church membership was still booming and Revd Springbett was assisted at various times by an Assistant Minister, Revd Derek Gill and in the 60s by a Deaconess, Patricia Parrish, known to all as just Pat, later ordained to ministry in Manchester. During this period, talks began regarding a move toward Church Unity, except at that time it was to be between the Presbyterian Church and the Church of England, but no agreement could be reached.
In 1958, the church was used as a base for a week of witness in S Liverpool, led by the then famous evangelist Dr Donald Soper, with thirty campaigners sleeping on mattresses on the premises and cooking breakfast in the kitchen.
Having been instrumental in helping found the Mossley Hill Neighbourhood Group of Churches (The Nine Churches), Revd Springbett moved on to St Luke’s, Bedford at Easter, 1970, after serving Allerton for over 12 years. Following a relatively short interim, a call was issued and accepted by Revd George Walker M.A. whose ministry here commenced in June 1971. It was in the following year that the Presbyterian Assembly announced that agreement had been reached with the Congregational Church and that the United Reformed Church would be born – which happened effective from 5th October, 1972, 50 years ago.
During this time, the present oak pulpit was installed here in 1972. However, it wasn’t new then, having been previously in Canning Street prior to 1932 and was for a time installed in Princess Road church before its relocation to Allerton owing to the connection some members still had with the latter church.
Early in 1974 the minister was again supported by an assistant, Sheila Massey, later ordained as minister in Little Sutton. However, unstinting support was also given to the church in the form of Clerks of Session and of Management (Elders and Managers), a succession of treasurers, organists and choir masters as well as Sunday School teachers and leaders of organisations. In the 50th anniversary commemorative booklet in 1982 a very special mention was given to David Snowdon who by then had served for 32 years as Session Clerk / Church Secretary as well as his oversight of the Sunday School. Mr Snowdon went on to complete 35 years before handing on the reins to Ian Hamilton in 1985 who himself went on to do over 30 years. So, until 2016 and the present arrangement of the Secretariat, there had been only three people individually occupying the posts of Session Clerk / Church Secretary since 1932.
Mr Walker retired from ministry in 1983 after, again, over 12 years at Allerton, then Mr Snowdon decided to call it a day in 1985. In 1984, after the interim ministry of Revd Albert Bailey, a call was issued to Revd Malcolm Shapland from Lymm, who, coincidentally also went on to serve 12 years with us as our last 100% minister until 1996. We were soon able to call a new minister when Revd David Greenwood agreed to accept our invitation, arriving with us in 1997 from East Yorkshire synod.
At around the time of our 60th anniversary in the early/mid-eighties we held an enormous three-day flower festival and exhibition encompassing every facet of church life, with hardly a person not involved in some way or other. Held during Malcolm’s ministry, the driving force behind it was Miss Diane Jackson. A banner was created, (see previous) depicting the Allerton Oak and the church emitting a welcoming light, alongside an embroidered front piece for the church piano declaiming ‘Gloria In Excelsis Deo’. Both were the work of Ros and Eileen Skyner, if memory serves correctly.
Our 70th anniversary was also celebrated in great style in 2002 with a flower festival and exhibition of work and photographs representing each section of the church, similar to the huge one held ten years or so before. To commemorate the event, during David’s ministry a magnificent banner was created by Mrs Hilda Thomas, ably assisted by husband Brian who made the stand for it. Their choice of the symbolism in the dove of peace, the children entering a welcoming church ahead of the adults, and the all-encompassing rainbow are “just as relevant today as they were when it was created”, to quote Brian.
In the intervening twenty years since then, we have had three ministers, albeit shared with other churches in joint pastorates to some degree or other. David served until 2002 and was succeeded in 2005 by Revd Gordon Smith, the intervening three years having been splendidly filled by interim moderator Revd Ken Cox. After Gordon moved on to Scotland in 2012, there was a two-year period before Revd Tim Meadows accepted the call to Allerton in 2014, moving from city centre ministry in Liverpool. It has been during Tim’s leadership here that the sanctuary has undergone its second major reconfiguration. After the total removal of the original pews, the restoration of the floor and the transformation into the inspiring open space it is today it was re-opened with great joy at Pentecost 2018. Our vision of bringing Faith and Community Together is centred around the sanctuary, the main hall and, of course, the newly-refurbished Proven Hall.
Naturally, over such a long period of time, organisations and practices have started, flourished and eventually been dissolved, their purpose fulfilled. Others have morphed into something similar but with a different name. We no longer have a church choir, for instance. A badminton club flourished for many a year, but is no more. There are no longer any Scouts, Brownies or Guides but there are now flourishing Beavers and Rainbows and our Drake and Hawkins Cub packs have successfully merged into one. Junior Club, for many years a staple for hordes of young people on Friday evenings has come and gone after serving its purpose for over 20 years. Young Wives eventually became Monday Club. Christmas and Spring fairs are now a well-established tradition but were not always so. Indeed, some will recall the fierce debate that raged before the very first 20p raffle was introduced as recently as the mid-nineties. The one-time Mother and Toddler group, started in 1980, became URChins and still flourishes as Tots & Co, albeit just once a week now. The Young People’s Society, founded in the thirties eventually became the Fellowship of Youth, then FURY (Fellowship of United Reformed Youth) and for a time recently existed as a partnership between Allerton and two other S. Liverpool URCs.
Regarding our charitable giving, there used to be Missionary Boxes in all our homes, now we give via the URC’s Ministry and Mission annual levy. Retiring offerings are now the norm after each communion, to be accumulated and distributed at Christmas through the Care Committee. Christian Aid is our single biggest annual charitable donation, but even that has evolved from the once all-embracing house-to-house collection effort into an annual coffee morning and the Harvest donation via Commitment for Life, formerly the 1% Appeal.
Since the earliest days of Allerton Presbyterian Church there has always been a record of a multitude of activities throughout the premises on every day of the week and nowadays is no exception. Where the difference lies is that in our earliest years all the activities were church-related, led by the elders and members and principally for the wider congregation’s participation. While there are still several of this nature, what we now have is a whole spread of church users on the premises each day – some twenty or so events regularly taking place on a weekly or monthly basis. Some of these, like Diddi Dance, Move to the Groove, KUMON tuition, yoga, tai-chi and musical theatre & dance would have been totally alien as “church” activities to our forebears of ninety years ago. The Blessing of the Animals would have held no place with early Allerton Elders. Zoom services, a website, electronic distribution of the Messenger and Wi-Fi throughout the premises? Maybe even coffee after the service in the sanctuary? No. Yet, we continue to develop. We are still “church” but now have different facets to our existence. We have had to change and adapt whilst keeping the core message of the gospel of Jesus at our core. After 90 years of still-continuing hard work by many, following the examples set by those who have gone before, the Church on the Corner is still here, bringing Faith and Community Together.
To all those who have laboured diligently in the vineyard, so to speak, over the years we must be eternally grateful as we continue to reap the harvest of their inspired efforts, their wisdom, their faith and the leadership of nine ministers. We continue to stand upon the foundations of those who conceived and built our ambitious building which, although altered a little, still serves the congregation and the community of Allerton and beyond. R Redfern
Happy Ninetieth Birthday, Allerton URC.
