Essex Family History

Methodists in Eastern Essex

Following inspiring visits to Essex by John Wesley in the 18th century and the new evangelical mood sweeping rural England Methodism took a strong hold in Eastern Essex.

During the early 19th century divisions within the Methodist movement entailed a split into two groups of Methodism that had the same basic beliefs on religion although different interpretations of way to worship.

This villages and towns could have a Wesleyan Methodist Church and a Primitive Wesleyan Church.

Eastern Essex was noted for it's strong evangelical zeal and followed the Primitive Methodist Route with chapels in the below locations belonging to the Maldon Primitive Methodist Circuit.

Althorne

Bradwell on Sea

Burnham on Crouch

Mayland

Mundon

Purleigh

Tillingham

Althorne Methodist Chapel - Now a private house

By 1946 the two factions had drawn closer together and congregations had begun dwindling from the heady days of packed chapels.

After some negotiation the Wesleyan Methodists and the Primitive Methodists joined together with the local churches remanded the Maldon Methodist Circuit and in 1970 further amalgamation took place with the Maldon and Chelmsford Circuits joining together.

The Congregational Church offered partnership with the Presbyterian Church and to the Methodists. Whilst the official Methodist Church remained separate albeit with close links many of the smaller churches chose to amalgamate with Congregational Churches where these were situated in close proximity.

All of the existing Methodist Churches in Eastern Essex are now redundant or have amalgamated with the Congregational Church to form a new URC Chapel.

The nearest independent chapel is at Maldon.

Burnham Methodist Chapel - Now a private house