High House Chapel And Former Minister'S House

STANHOPE A689 (North side) NY 8738 Ireshopeburn 36/103 High House Chapel and former minister's house GV II

Wesleyan Methodist Chapel and minister's house, now chapel and museum. 1760; extended and raised 1871. Sandstone rubble with quoins, plinth and ashlar dressings; Welsh slate roof with stone gable copings.

Chapel: 2 storeys, 3 windows; house set back at left: 2 lower storeys and 2 bays, the left curved, and one-storey, one-bay pent left porch. West front of chapel has 4-panelled double door and shaped fanlight under wide 2-centred arch on pilasters; similar surrounds to flanking narrower windows all under drip moulds. Continuous drip mould to 3 first-floor windows in similar style with sill string. Round-headed louvred opening in gable peak has 2-centred-arched drip mould. North and south fronts have chamfered flat stone lintels and projecting stone sills to 3 windows on each floor. All windows late C19 sashes.

House has boarded door in centre, in plain stone surround; 20-pane sashes; truncated left chimney. Interior: painted plaster above boarded and panelled dado; coved stippled-plaster ceiling. Slender, tapered cast iron columns, with abaci, painted in marbling with stencilled decoration, support 3 sides of continuous gallery with panelled balustrade on brackets; west gallery on wall behind high pulpit, which has pierced stylised flower patterns in Gothic panels; organ in west gallery. Communion rail on slender turned balusters; smaller balusters to west of side aisles. 12-sided ceiling ventilators with fret panels.

House has C19 kitchen range in front room, plain stone chimney-piece in rear room which has window shutters. L-plan stair has pierced cast iron panels supporting moulded handrail with Gothic newels.

Source: Clack and Pattinson Weardale Chapels Durham 1978.

Listing NGR: NY8726438544