Former Methodist Church And Epworth Hall Adjoining To South

HELSTON

SW6427 COINAGEHALL STREET 631-1/4/91 (South side) 13/07/90 Former Methodist Church and Epworth Hall adjoining to south (Formerly Listed as: COINAGEHALL STREET (South side) Methodist Church including old chapel adjoining south)

GV II

Methodist church and adjoining earlier chapel. Dated 1888, with early C19 former chapel. Dressed grey Devon limestone front with granite dressings and dressed granite behind with granite dressings. Slate roof with gabled ends; half-hipped roof and semi-conical apse roof over old chapel. Large rectangular auditorium galleried on 4 sides, entrance under the gallery at the liturgical west (north) end, rostrum at opposite end behind which is the organ chamber over the vestry. Attached at the back (south) is the early C19 chapel, its auditorium on the first floor with an apse on the long south side. Classical 2-storey north front of 1:2:1 bays, centre advanced and pedimented, moulded strings, pilastered and with urns on the parapets, over the corners. Round-arched first-floor windows with moulded extrados, imposts and keyblocks, segmental ground-floor windows and large central portico with 2-bay arcade on polished pink granite columns in antis and granite balustrade above. 2 round-headed doorways inside portico with panelled double doors. Similar single bay plus 7 window returns, segmental arches on ground floor and round-headed above. The old chapel behind has round-headed ground- and first-floor sash windows and semi-circular apse on the south side. The north front area has granite piers and later railings. INTERIOR: the 1888 auditorium is complete and sumptuously decorated and furnished; panel-fronted galleries on cast-iron columns, fine wooden rostrum and pilastered proscenium to the organ chamber above, elaborate coffered plaster ceiling with centre-piece; the original benches are largely complete. Stained glass windows. Old chapel's first-floor auditorium has shallow vaulted plaster ceiling, apse now a stage, panelled dado. HISTORICAL NOTE: the 1888 church seats nearly 1,000 people and cost »5,000 including the site. When it was built the old chapel became the Sunday school, but this has recently reverted to chapel use now that the 1888 part is closed. (Kelly's Directory: Devonshire and Cornwall: 1902-: 131).

Listing NGR: SW6579527391