Wainsgate Baptist Church

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Wainsgate Baptist Church is a former Baptist chapel located above the town of Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire, England. It sits on elevated ground and, with its attached school, is a Grade II* listed building. The chapel is managed by the Historic Chapels Trust.

The church was founded for the Particular Baptists in 1750 during the Evangelical Revival and was inspired by Rev William Grimshaw. Its first minister was Richard Smith, followed in 1764 by John Fawcett, who wrote the hymn “Blessed Be the Tie that Binds” in 1772.

The present chapel was built in 1859–60, with improvements to its furnishings in the 1890s. The building at the back of the chapel was originally the manse and was converted for use as a school in 1890. The church closed in 2001, and in 2004 the Historic Chapels Trust took over its care.

Architecturally, the chapel is made of hammer-dressed stone with ashlar dressings and a slate roof. It is two storeys tall with a three-bay entrance front. The doorway has decorative pilasters and a fanlight, and above it is a date plaque of 1859. Inside, there is a curved gallery, an organ, and a pulpit added in 1891, which is octagonal and made of alabaster and colored marbles, designed by Anthony Welsh. The communion table dates from 1896, and the surrounding rails were made of oak by J. W. Mitchell of Halifax. The windows feature stained glass by the Powell Brothers of Leeds, and the ceiling is painted with a starry design.

Monuments to Richard Smith and John Fawcett are inside the church. In the graveyard lies John Fawcett’s tomb (1817), an ashlar chest tomb on a plinth, surrounded by a low stone wall with cast-iron railings. The tomb is Grade II listed. The graveyard also contains First World War graves. Today, the chapel and school are cared for and the venue hosts concerts and other events.