History of Bethel Free Church

In the years of 1880 to 1890 Railway Missions were started for railway workers and their families.  Christian workers, at that time mostly ladies, went into mess rooms and on platforms introducing railway workers to the Lord Jesus.  Many were converted at this time.  Because of the hours railwaymen worked, they found it difficult to go to church, especially on Sundays.  Mission Halls were built and in the early days workers such as drivers, firemen, guards, ticket collectors and other shift workers would come into a service, sometimes half way through, or would go out to report for work half way through the service, all in their working clothes.  This they felt they couldn't have done in a church.

The Leeds branch of the Mission was started sometime around the late 1890s and was a Railway Mission until 1980.  The Mission Hall was surrounded by railway worker's houses.  Many of the children came to the Sunday School and the Christian Endeavour meetings.  On Whit Sunday morning the congregation used to go around the streets singing our Whitsuntide hymns.  Then on Whit Monday the children were taken out in the early days by horse and cart, and later by buses to a field outside Leeds, where games and races took place.  This was the highlight of the year for many of those children and the only time some of them left their own streets.

In the 1960s all the railway sheds in the area were closed down and moved from Armley to Neville Hill, York Road, in the north east of Leeds.  The City Council then decided to demolish the houses and build a new estate.  The Railway Mission Committee were then informed that the Hall would have to go to make way for houses.  The blessing at this time was that the hall had been bought earlier by Christian business men and given to the Leeds branch of the Railway Mission.  It was felt that because of this, whatever the amount of compensation paid by the Council would help to build a new church.  At this time it was decided to start a building fund and this was to be raised by direct giving, not by fund raising efforts.

Then followed ten years of waiting.  Eric Pennock, who was at this time Honorary Superintendent, along with Robert Ferguson, the Secretary, went time after time to the Civic Hall to push the authorities along.  During this time Rev. Philip Gomersall was sent to Leeds.  He was the Assistant General Secretary of the Railway Mission for the British Isles.  He took over as Pastor, and having been brought up in the Leeds Railway Mission Sunday School, he was very interested in the future of the work.  Because of the illness and eventual death of Eric Pennock, Philip Gomersall took over the contact with the authorities.  At this time Mr Peter Hartridge, who had an interest in Railway Mission work, came to live near Leeds and took on the legal side of the negotiations.

Eventually, the building of the new church commenced in the same area as the old Hall.  Much prayer was made as the new church grew brick by brick.  A new inclusion in the building was a baptistry so that we could hold believer's baptism in our own church instead of having to go to other churches.  At the time of opening, £3,000 was the total in the building fund.

The first Sunday in June 1980 was our first service but we held the official opening in September.  On the Friday, the day before the opening, Pastor Gomersall went to the council offices and at the opening on the Saturday he was able to announce that we were not a penny in debt.  The church was given £3,000 added compensation and none of the building fund had to be used.  The church had been decorated and carpets laid by the council, and we had a lovely kitchen which the old Hall never had.  We could now afford to buy an organ - this too was a miracle.  God led us to a shop in Leeds which that day we found had a sale on, and one organ was the buy of the day.  This was being sold for £1,000, which was a very good buy!

The official opening of the new church in September was a tremendous day.  The church was full to overflowing with well wishers from many parts of the country.  These friends were from the many churches the old Railway Mission members had maintained fellowship with over the years.  At a meeting of Trustees in 1982 the name of the church was officially changed from the Railway Mission to Bethel Free Church.