People'S Mission Hall

CORN STREET (North side)

People's Mission Hall 12/06/50 II

Mission hall, formerly a Roman Catholic chapel. Completed 1797, with C20 alterations, possibly by John Palmer. MATERIALS: Limestone ashlar with slate roof. EXTERIOR: Hall with large hipped roof set at angle to street faced by two storey range set to follow street line. To street in five bays, with replacement windows to former sashes at both levels, and blind light in bay five, where block narrows down across hall. Centre wide pair of C20 doors to flat three centred head, and in stone doorcase with pilasters to splayed bases and Doric capitals, with full entablature immediately below platband. Small cavetto cornice, blocking course and parapet. Left return at acute angle, with four large sixteen-pane lights to segmental heads and heavy square sills, and, at front end, similar raised light in sunk panel above horizontal four-pane light, beyond this outer end of front range. Plinth rendered, cornice and parapet continue from front. Right return similar, set at obtuse angle, but without bay corresponding with front range. INTERIOR: Not inspected. Previous list refers to flat ceiling with deep cove, gallery at street end on Doric columns, and north end with fluted Corinthian pilasters carrying entablature without architrave, characteristic of Palmer. HISTORY: The building presently stands rather isolated, in area which suffered considerable bomb damage in the Baedeker Blitz of 1942. This was Bath's Roman Catholic church from 1786/7 until 1809 when they moved to the Old Theatre (now Masonic Hall qv) in Orchard Street. This church was built after the previous one in St James¿s Passage was destroyed in the Anti-Papist Gordon Riots of 1780. The presbytery was at 12 St James's Parade (qv). The chapel was used by Baptists in the 1830s and then became used as a mission chapel for St Paul¿s church until 1936. From c1947 it was used by a breakaway body of the Salvation Army called the People¿s Band Mission. SOURCES: [C. Stell, `An Inventory of Non-Conformist Chapels and Meeting Houses of South-West England¿ (RCHME 1991), 166].

Listing NGR: ST7493264515