A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



The cause at Bolton started contemporaneously with that of Manches- 

 ter, and proceeded on parallel lines. Camp meetings were held in the town 

 in 1 82 1, and in the following year Bolton became a circuit. The chapel in 

 Newport Street, built in 1822, moved in 1865 to Moor Lane, and is now the 

 head of Bolton Second Circuit, leaving Higher Bridge Street chapel (built 

 1836), as the head of Bolton First Circuit. 



Bury was missioned in the same year as Bolton, 1821 (becoming an in- 

 dependent station in 1836), as was also Ashton-under-Lyne, which, after 

 being attached to the Oldham Circuit in 1825, became in 1838 the Staly- 

 bridge Circuit. At Oldham, another strong centre of this church, camp 

 meetings were first held in 1822, the impulse coming from Manchester. In 

 1862 the cause here was divided into two circuits : First, under Grosvenor 

 Street chapel (now Boardman Street), and Second, under Lees Road (com- 

 prising Lees, Bardsley, Waterhead, Elliott Street, Delft, and Hollinwood). 

 In 1880 the last named, Hollinwood, became the head of Oldham Third 

 Circuit. 



Rochdale was missioned in the same year, 1821, which saw the outburst 

 of the Primitive movement in the greater part of south-east Lancashire. Its 

 first meeting room of 1825 in Packer Meadow grew into Drake Street 

 chapel in 1830. Rochdale remained part of the Manchester Circuit until 

 1837, when it became the head of a station. 



The mission wave which has been thus briefly described is to be regarded 

 as proceeding from Tunstall, the original home of the Primitive movement. 

 As distinct from this the evangelization of the Blackburn and Preston district 

 was a Yorkshire movement. It was undertaken from the Craven district of 

 the Hull mission of the Primitives. The work began in 1822 in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Wigan. In 1823 Preston became a circuit, as did also Black- 

 burn and Clitheroe (afterwards Burnley) in 1824. At Burnley the first chapel 

 was built in 1834, in Curzon Street ; the second, Bethel, in 1852. In 1864, 

 by subdivision from Burnley, Colne became Burnley second. From Burnley 

 also sprang Haslingden in 1837, which in its turn gave birth, by division, to 

 Foxhill Bank and Accrington in 1864. Preston was missioned comparatively 

 later in the day, in 1829, and from Halton and Lancaster; but assuming 

 greater importance it became the head, and Lancaster was only subsequently 

 divided from it to form for a time part of the Settle and Halifax Circuit, but 

 to become an independent circuit in 1868. This central constituency of the 

 Lancashire Primitives is completed by Chorley (missioned in 1837), Hoole 

 (missioned in 18 24 from Preston), Southport (missioned from Hoole before 

 1833), and the Fylde (missioned from Preston in 1848). 



The Liverpool church has a rather more composite and disputable origin. 

 William Clowes himself preached in the streets there in 18 12, and in 1821 

 John Rede was arrested for street preaching, but the actual inception of the 

 church seems to date from the preaching of James Roles, who came from 

 Preston m 1821. In the same year Maguire Street chapel was built, and 

 Liverpool became a circuit two or three years later. But, comparatively 

 speaking, the development in Liverpool is a late one. Mount Pleasant 

 chapel (now Walnut Street) was not built till 1834, the Prince William 

 Street and Seamen's chapel not till later, and the Pentecost and Tubilee 

 chapels not till i860. 



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