ROMAN CATHOLICISM.
During the 1580s a
secret Catholic printing press was operated for a
short time at Green Street, East Ham, by the Jesuit
missionary Robert Parsons, possibly assisted by
members of the More family, one of whom, the
wife of Thomas More, was presented for recusancy
in 1582, along with another resident of the parish. (fn. 1)
Lady Kempe, lady of the manor of East Ham, is
included in a list, drawn up in 1643, of those whose
lands were sequestrated by Parliament: she was said
to be a Papist delinquent. (fn. 2) Another Roman Catholic
landowner was Richard Langhorne (d. 1719). (fn. 3) A
return of Essex papists drawn up in 1767 mentions
under East Ham only the migrant Irish who visited
the parish during the potato season, but in 1778
there were said to be 7 Roman Catholic families
(presumably resident) in the parish. (fn. 4)
The Catholic industrial school, Manor Park,
opened in 1868, contained the chapel of ST.
NICHOLAS, Gladding Road, which was open to
the public. (fn. 5) The church of St. Peter and St. Paul,
Ilford, opened in 1899, included within its parish
the northern part of East Ham. (fn. 6) The chapel of
St. Nicholas was subsequently attached to Ilford
until 1918, when it became the church of the
new parish of Manor Park. (fn. 7) The church of ST.
STEPHEN, Church Road, was built in 1924 as a
chapel to St. Nicholas. It was rebuilt in 1959 and
then became the parish church, with St. Nicholas
as its chapel. (fn. 8)
A Catholic chapel at Boleyn Castle, East Ham,
was registered for public worship in 1901. (fn. 9) This was
attached to St. Edward's industrial school, opened
in 1870. In 1906, when St. Edward's was closed,
services were transferred to the new Catholic elementary school in Castle Street, where they were
held until the opening, in 1911, of the present church
of OUR LADY OF COMPASSION, Green
Street, adjoining the school, for the new parish of
Upton Park. (fn. 10)
The eastern part of East Ham was served from
Barking until 1926, when the church of ST.
MICHAEL, also used as a day school, was built in
Tilbury Road. A larger school was built in 1931 and
the original building was then used only as the
church. A new church was opened in 1959. (fn. 11)
The church of OUR LADY AND ST. EDWARD, Silvertown, was opened in Bailey Street in
1887, and completed in 1892. The original building
was in West Ham, though the adjoining school was
in East Ham. In 1915, when the site of the church
and school was taken over for the building of the
King George V Dock, a temporary church was
erected in Newland Street, East Ham. This was
replaced by a permanent church in 1921. (fn. 12)
PROTESTANT NONCONFORMITY.
There
are occasional references to nonconformists in East
Ham from the 17th century onwards, but no permanent congregation appears to have been formed
before the 1870s. In 1615 a man and his wife were
presented in the archdeacon's court for refusing to
attend the parish church, and for holding a conventicle in their home; they were suspected of being
Brownists. (fn. 13) In 1665 members of a conventicle
meeting in the house of William Williams of East
Ham, gentleman, were fined by the Stratford
magistrates. (fn. 14) These dissenters came from London,
Stepney, Barking, Dagenham, and Hornchurch, as
well as East Ham. Most of them were craftsmen,
with such occupations as bricklayer, wheelwright,
weaver, tanner, and blacksmith. This was almost
certainly a Quaker meeting, since several of its
members can be identified as Friends, from presentments of the 1670s and 1680s. (fn. 15) There was said to
be one Quaker family in the parish in 1766, and
two were reported in 1790. (fn. 16) A dissenters' meetinghouse appears to have existed in 1778, but had
closed by 1790. (fn. 17) In 1802 and 1808 Baptist meetings
were registered, in 1811 an Independent meeting,
and in 1823 two meetings whose denomination is
not stated: all these were in private houses. (fn. 18)
No nonconformist meeting was returned for East
Ham at the Parliamentary inquiry of 1829 or the
religious census of 1851. Apart from the small
mission hall in Greenhill Grove, Little Ilford, (fn. 19) the
first permanent nonconformist churches seem to
have been those of the Primitive Methodists at
North Woolwich, the Wesleyans in Market Street
(later in Barking Road), the Free Methodists at
Manor Park, and the London City Mission in
Plashet Lane (Grangewood Street), all of which were
founded about 1870. By 1903 there were at least
37 nonconformist churches in the urban district,
with Sunday congregations totalling 13,346. (fn. 20) At
that time East Ham had a higher percentage [64] of
nonconformists among its worshippers than any
other place in outer London. (fn. 21) The reason for this
was probably that the phenomenal growth of the
town during the 1890s focused upon it the attention
of all the denominations at a time when they were
becoming well geared to Metropolitan church extension, through central agencies with special funds.
The high priority enjoyed by East Ham as a home
mission field is shown, just after 1903, by the building of the Wesleyan central hall, one of the largest of
its kind in England, at a cost of £26,000. The size
of the congregations attracted to the hall before the
First World War demonstrates the popularity of
nonconformity in East Ham at that period, but this
is also proved by the proliferation of small churches,
using iron buildings or private houses. Little more
than four walls and a roof was needed to start a
church, and occasionally even less might suffice: in
one case the archway between two houses was fitted
up as a temporary Primitive Methodist chapel.
In hurrying to form new churches the denominations competed against each other, even when
conditions favoured collaboration. This caused comment at the time. In 1894 the Primitive Methodist
Richard Blair, one of East Ham's most successful
evangelists, discussing free church activity at Manor
Park, wrote: 'There has been a good deal of overlapping … it is a great pity that some of us are not
in some other district needing us more.' (fn. 22) The pressure of competition led some congregations to erect
buildings larger than they could afford, in the hope
of future growth that did not materialize. Thus the
Congregational church in High Street North, Manor
Park, opened new buildings in 1904 with a debt of
over £5,000, and by 1907 was facing ruin. This
church was less than ½ mile from another of the
same denomination and at least eight others of
different denominations.
The preponderance of nonconformists over the
Anglicans in 1903 was not achieved merely by more
numerous buildings. The free church congregations,
as computed by Mudie-Smith, were on average
slightly the larger, and they also had three out of
the four churches with total attendances for the day
of over 1,000, and eight out of the fourteen with
over 500. (fn. 23) The Wesleyans were the strongest body,
followed by the Baptists, Congregationalists, Free
Methodists, Primitive Methodists, and Presbyterians: these bodies between them had over 60 per
cent of the nonconformist churches and 90 per cent
of their worshippers. No exact attendance figures
are available after 1903. Free church activity, as
reflected in membership figures, seems to have been
fairly well maintained until the 1930s, but since
then has fallen greatly, especially in the larger
churches. There has been little new building since
1903, and some churches have been closed. While
the total number of nonconformist places of worship
is not much lower than in 1903 the older bodies are
much weaker, both in numbers of buildings and in
membership. The Congregationalists, for example,
who in 1900 had four churches and 807 members,
in 1966 had three churches and 107 members. (fn. 24)
The following accounts of individual churches
were compiled in 1965.
Baptists.
New Beckton church, Beaconsfield
Street, an iron building, was erected in 1888. (fn. 25)
Little Ilford Tabernacle, Sheringham Avenue,
Manor Park, was founded in 1889, in White Post
Lane (now High Street North). (fn. 26) In 1895 an iron
building was erected in Salisbury Road. This was
burnt down in 1897, but re-erected in the same
year. In 1900 the congregation moved to Little
Ilford Lane, still using an iron building. A permanent church was built in 1905. In 1957 a new
hall, mainly for youth work, was added. This contains a large mural painting, completed in 1961,
depicting 'Pilgrim's Progress'.
Manor Park Tabernacle, High Street North, was
also founded in 1889. (fn. 27) It met first in a room in
Carlyle Road, and later in the 'Gospel Shop', Romford Road (1890–93), and the former Congregational
church in Greenhill Grove (1893–8). In 1898 an iron
building was erected in High Street North, and in
1906 the present (1965) church was opened. The
iron building was replaced in 1925 by a permanent
Sunday school. For most of its history the church
has had a settled minister.
Plashet Grove church, known at first as East
Ham Tabernacle, originated about 1895 in services
promoted by the London Baptist Association. (fn. 28) An
iron building was erected on the corner of Katherine
Road and Victoria Avenue, and was used until 1901,
when the Plashet Grove church was completed.
This is an aisled building of dark red brick, seating
1,000. In its early years it was one of the strongest
nonconformist churches in East Ham, with a total
attendance, on one Sunday in 1903, of 972.
Grantham gospel mission, Church Road, Manor
Park, was founded in 1900 by F. Tite, a coal merchant, who erected an iron building in Southborough (now Grantham) Road. (fn. 29) In 1934 a new
hall was built, on the corner of Church Road and
Walton Road, and in 1959 a Sunday school was
added. The honorary superintendents of the mission,
all laymen, included Sydney P. Giller, who served
from 1913 to 1946. From its early days the mission,
though undenominational, had support from local
Baptists, and in 1963 it joined the Baptist Union.
Bonny Downs church, Flanders Road, (fn. 30) originated
in a Sunday school, held in the open air and later
in a private house by Charles W. Howe, a young
Baptist who had first visited the Bonny Downs
district to distribute Spurgeon's tracts. (fn. 31) In 1908 he
rented an empty shop on the corner of Bonny Downs
Road (now Darwell Close) and Flanders Road, a
free church was formed, and he became pastor. The
present church was built in 1928. It joined the
Baptist Union in 1946.
Strict Baptists.
Hope church, Stafford Road,
originally called Ebenezer, was founded in 1889
at Ferndale Road, Forest Gate, by two London
ministers, F. C. Holden of Limehouse, and John Box
of Soho. (fn. 32) In 1902 two rooms in Red Post Lane (now
Katherine Road) were registered for worship, and
these were used until 1906, when Hope was opened.
A primary school hall was built in 1939, to which an
upper storey with three classrooms was added in
1950.
Rehoboth church, High Street North, Manor
Park, was built in 1907. (fn. 33) The congregation, which
traced its origin back to 1830, had moved in 1905
from Rehoboth, Wellesley Street, Stepney (Lond.)
to temporary rooms in Romford Road, Manor Park.
The cost of the High Street church was met mainly
by invested funds obtained by the sale, in 1874, of a
previous building owned by the congregation. The
move took place during the ministry (1895–1915) of
Jabez Parnell. A new schoolroom was added in 1928.
The present membership is 20.
Zion church, 764 Romford Road, Manor Park,
was registered for worship in 1916. (fn. 34) It appears to
have ceased by 1922.
Brethren.
In 1903 a group of Brethren were meeting in the Recreation Hall, Romford Road (corner
of Salisbury Road). (fn. 35) The Assembly Hall, Barking
Road, was registered for worship from 1907 to
1940. (fn. 36) Milton Hall, Milton Avenue, was registered
by Open Brethren from 1911 to 1953. (fn. 37) Gainsborough Hall, Gainsborough Avenue, was built
about 1907. It was registered by 'Christians' in 1937,
and in 1960 was re-registered by Brethren in a new
building. (fn. 38)
Congregationalists.
The village Congregational
church, which existed in Greenhill Grove from the
1860s, has been treated under Little Ilford. (fn. 39) It was
the predecessor of a larger, suburban church. E. T.
Egg, well known for his church extension activities
in south-west Essex, became temporary pastor at
Greenhill Grove in 1886, remaining until 1890,
when the congregation erected a lecture hall in
Manor Park Road, and moved there. (fn. 40) H. D. Bull
became the first settled minister in 1891. In 1895
a church was erected in Manor Park Road, (fn. 41) but
it did not prosper: it was heavily mortgaged, its
membership fell from 157 in 1899 to 90 in 1911, and
it closed about 1914. This early decline may have
been due in part to its back street position.
Plashet Park church, Chester Road, was founded
in 1884, in a room in Crescent Road. (fn. 42) Meetings
were subsequently held in the public hall, Green
Street, from 1884 until 1887, when a two-storeyed
building (later used for classrooms) was erected in
Chester Road, during the temporary pastorate of
E. T. Egg. An iron building was added in 1890, a
permanent church in 1895, and an institute in 1914.
In 1925 the iron hall was gutted by fire. Its site was
sold to the borough council for a chest clinic, and in
1926 a new hall, fronting on Katherine Road, was
opened. In 1941 the church was badly damaged by
bombing. It was reconstructed and re-opened in
1952. For most of its history the church has had a
settled minister. In its earlier years it was one of the
stronger nonconformist churches in the district, (fn. 43)
and it was still flourishing in the 1920s, with a
membership of over 300, and a Sunday school of
600. (fn. 44) In 1965 the membership was about 60. The
institute (1914) and hall (1926) were then on lease
to the National Assistance Board.
Wakefield Street church originated in 1886, when
S. W. Patmore opened a mission in the Holme
Road Assembly Room. (fn. 45) In 1890 this work was
taken over by the London Congregational Union,
which erected an iron church in Stamford Road,
with E. T. Egg as temporary pastor. In 1897 H. G.
Brown became the first settled minister, and in
1901 a brick church, seating 800, was opened in
Wakefield Street. In 1903 this was the strongest
Congregational church in East Ham. (fn. 46) A Sunday
school was built in 1911, when the church membership was 215. (fn. 47) In 1940 the church was destroyed by
bombing, and from 1941 to 1945 the congregation
worshipped in East Avenue Presbyterian church. (fn. 48)
The Sunday school, fronting on Myrtle Road,
survived, and was later used for worship until 1957,
when the church was rebuilt. By 1965 the active
membership had fallen to about 20, but in that year
the church was able to appoint the Revd. Phyllis
Davies as minister.
Manor Park (formerly Little Ilford) church, High
Street North, was formed in 1897, when an iron
building was opened in Coleridge Avenue, with
A. G. Prichard as minister. (fn. 49) In 1904 a new church,
seating 750, with adjoining hall, was opened in High
Street North on the corner of Strone Road. In
building these premises the congregation incurred
a debt of over £5,500, and by 1907, when Prichard
was succeeded by George Packer (1907–12) they
were 'diminished and ready to perish'. (fn. 50) Packer's
energetic leadership, with financial help from the
London Congregational Union and other benefactors, saved the church, though at the cost of the
minister's health. (fn. 51) By 1911 there were 114 members and a Sunday school of 432. In 1966 the
equivalent figures were 24 and 45.
Sibley Grove (Welsh Congregational) church was
formed in 1901 by the King's Cross (Lond.) Congregational church. (fn. 52) In 1945 the iron building was
sold to the London Welsh Methodist circuit.
Free Church of England and Reformed Episcopal Church.
St. Saviour's church, Carlyle Road, was
built in 1894–5, possibly to replace an iron church
erected in the same road about two years before. (fn. 53)
It was one of the two Reformed Episcopal churches
said in 1894 to exist at Manor Park. Christ Church,
Carlyle Road, registered in 1903, and given a new
façade in the same year, was probably identical with
St. Saviour's, or was its successor; it survived until
1905, when its premises were taken over by the
Salvation Army. (fn. 54)
A Reformed Episcopal church next door to the
Primitive Methodist church in Romford Road is
mentioned in 1894; it was a 'split' from another,
presumably that in Carlyle Road. (fn. 55) It may have
been the forerunner of the next.
St. Stephen's church, Shrewsbury Road (corner
of Strone Road), an iron building, was erected in
1897 and seems to have survived until 1909, when
its premises were taken over by Spiritualists. (fn. 56)
Methodists.
The three Methodist connexions
which united in 1932 had a total of 11 churches in
East Ham. These are listed under their pre-1932
groupings. Immediately after 1932 there was a
strong movement towards local amalgamation,
which was largely successful, though long resisted in
at least one case. In 1965 the Methodist churches in
the borough lay in three circuits: the London
Mission (East Ham) (three churches), the Leytonstone and Forest Gate circuit (two), and the London
Welsh circuit (one). In the following accounts the
letters (W), (P), and (U) denote ex-Wesleyan, ex-Primitive, and ex-United Methodist churches.
East Ham (W) central hall, Barking Road, can
trace its origin back to about 1870, when an iron
church was erected in Kelly Road (now Market
Street). (fn. 57) In 1880 a brick church was built in Barking
Road. It was in the Barking circuit. (fn. 58) In 1904 the
London Mission (East Ham) was formed with
John E. Wakerley as superintendent. Services were
started in the town hall, and plans made for a
central hall on the site of the old church and on
additional land bought for the purpose. (fn. 59) The central
hall, seating over 2,000, was opened in 1906, at a cost
of £26,000. It was designed by Gunton & Gunton in a
'Queen Anne' style of red brick with stone dressings,
its most striking feature being a domed tower. (fn. 60) The
church had great success in its early days. (fn. 61) In 1911
it was said to be crowded out, with the largest
Sunday morning congregation in Methodism, while
the Men's Brotherhood numbered nearly 3,000, and
the Sunday school 1,700. (fn. 62) In 1967, when the membership of the hall was 337, social work, especially
among old people, continued to be an important
part of the church's activity. (fn. 63) The hall was demolished in 1969.
Upton Park (W) church, Green Street, was opened
in 1882, in the Canning Town circuit. (fn. 64) A larger
church was erected in 1893–4, the original building
becoming the church hall. An extension was built in
1899–1900. In 1904 the membership was 261. The
Upton Manor circuit was formed in 1907. Upton
Park was transferred in 1926 to the Stratford circuit,
and in 1930 to the Leytonstone and Forest Gate
circuit, in which it has since remained. There were
68 members in 1962. (fn. 65)
Manor Park (W) church, Romford Road, originated in 1890, when Wesleyans from Forest Gate
(Stratford circuit) first held services at Durham
Cross, Manor Park. (fn. 66) Soon after, a site was acquired,
and an iron building was erected in Romford Road,
nearly opposite the United Methodist Free church
in Herbert Road. (fn. 67) A large brick church was opened
in 1900. (fn. 68) By 1903 the Wesleyan congregation was
almost three times that of Herbert Road. (fn. 69) A school
was added in 1907. Manor Park was included in the
Leytonstone and Forest Gate circuit, formed in
1930. (fn. 70) In 1934 the Romford Road society amalgamated with that in Herbert Road. The Romford
Road building continued in use for week-night
activities until about 1937, when it was sold. (fn. 71)
Abbots Park (W) church, Arragon Road (Canning
Town circuit), seems to have been erected in 1891–2
to serve the new Abbots Park housing estate. (fn. 72) It
was closed in 1904, having no doubt become
redundant with the opening of the services culminating in the building of the central hall. (fn. 73) The
iron building was acquired by the Anglicans in 1905
and re-erected in Norman Road as a Sunday school
for St. Mary's church. (fn. 74)
The growth of Primitive Methodism in East Ham
was largely due to the remarkable efforts of one of
their ministers, Richard S. Blair, who described his
work in two books. (fn. 75) He was superintendent successively of the 8th London, 13th London (Canning
Town), and Upton Park circuits. He worked at East
Ham from about 1880 until his retirement in 1904. (fn. 76)
North Woolwich (P) church, Elizabeth (now
Woodman) Street, originated about 1867. (fn. 77) Services
were held in a cottage, then in a shop, and later in an
archway between two houses, ingeniously fitted up
by R. S. Blair, then superintendent of the 8th
London circuit. In 1880 a brick church was built
in Elizabeth Street (corner of Storey Street). From
1881 it was in the 13th London (Canning Town)
circuit. The church was destroyed by bombing in
the Second World War, and was not rebuilt.
High Street South (P) church originated in 1872,
when A. G. Batten, a workman at Beckton Gas
works, first held services in a house in Mountfield
Road. (fn. 78) He maintained this work single-handed
until 1877, when he invited the Primitive Methodists
of the 8th London circuit to supply preachers. In
1880 R. S. Blair erected a temporary church in
High Street South. A permanent brick building was
opened in 1885. In 1881 the church was included
in the 13th London (Canning Town) circuit. In
1895, when its membership was 57, it became part
of the West Ham circuit. (fn. 79) It was transferred to the
London Mission (East Ham) in 1945. A new youth
hall was built in 1948, and in 1958 the church was
renovated and new schoolrooms added. The present
(1965) membership is 152. (fn. 80)
Beckton (P) church, Winsor Terrace, originated
about 1875, in cottage services held by Mr. and Mrs.
Fursey. Missioners from the Canning Town circuit
later opened a Sunday school. (fn. 81) By 1901 the society
was occupying its present building, which had been
erected by the Gas Light & Coke Co. as a school,
and which now (1965) belongs to the North Thames
Gas Board. (fn. 82) The church has been in the London
Mission (East Ham) since 1940 or earlier. (fn. 83)
Elizabeth Fry Memorial (P) church, Plashet
Grove, was R. S. Blair's most notable achievement
in East Ham. (fn. 84) In 1884, while still superintendent
of the Canning Town circuit, he started services at
Upton Park, where building development was in
progress on an estate formerly belonging to the Fry
family. In 1886 he secured Conference's approval
for an ambitious programme of evangelism, and in
the same year the Upton Park circuit was formed, at
first without members or officers except for Blair
himself, as superintendent. He had already bought
a site for a church and manse, in Plashet Grove.
The manse, called Newgate Villa in allusion to
Elizabeth Fry's prison work, was built in the same
year, and was used for services until 1889, when the
church with hall and schools beneath, designed by
William Dartnall, was opened. Vestries and church
parlour were added in 1891. By 1893 the Upton
Park circuit returned 103 members and three
preaching stations. After the Methodist union of
1932 the circuits in this area were reorganized and
some churches were closed: among these was
Elizabeth Fry Memorial, which was sold in 1934 to
the Assemblies of God. (fn. 85)
Manor Park (P) church, Sixth Avenue, originated
in 1885, when R. S. Blair bought a site on the
corner with Romford Road. (fn. 86) Mission work was
launched in 1886, and an iron building erected.
Progress was slow at first, but in 1901 a permanent
brick church was opened. (fn. 87) Sixth Avenue, originally
in the Canning Town circuit, was in the Upton Park
circuit from the 1890s until about 1934, when it was
transferred to the Leytonstone and Forest Gate
circuit as part of a scheme for uniting all three
Methodist churches at Manor Park. Sixth Avenue
was for long reluctant to accept amalgamation, but
eventually did so in 1963, when its members joined
those at Herbert Road. (fn. 88) Its buildings were sold to
the Anglicans of Little Ilford parish.
Boleyn Road (P) hall was founded by J. C. Page,
about 1886, as an undenominational mission for the
poor district then called Morley's Corner. (fn. 89) In 1893
he sold it to the Primitive Methodists of the Upton
Park circuit. They were still using it in 1907, but
had apparently ceased to do so by 1923. The building later became the Latimer Hall chapel. (fn. 90)
Katherine Road (P) church was an iron building,
erected in 1903. It still existed in 1912. (fn. 91)
The United Methodist churches of East Ham
were all originally part of the Forest Gate circuit.
Those founded before 1907 belonged to the United
Methodist Free Church.
Manor Park (U) church, Herbert Road, was
founded about 1870, when Free Methodists from
Field Road church, Forest Gate, held services in a
disused beer shop in Greenhill Grove and later in a
skittle alley. (fn. 92) In 1880 a building was erected in
Herbert Road (corner of Romford Road), but this
was soon overcrowded, and a larger church was
built in 1891. (fn. 93) In 1934, after Methodist union,
Herbert Road was joined by the members of the
Romford Road (W) church, as a society of the
Leytonstone and Forest Gate circuit, after which
the Romford Road buildings were sold, and the
proceeds used to build a new Sunday school and
institute on the Herbert Road site. (fn. 94) Herbert Road
was rebuilt in 1964 with funds raised by the sale of
the Sixth Avenue (P) church. (fn. 95)
Tennyson Avenue (U) church originated about
1894, when the plans for a school-chapel were
approved by the local board. It was extended in
1899–1900, and additions were made to the hall in
1909. In 1947 it was transferred from the Forest
Gate circuit to the East Ham mission, and it was
closed about 1948. (fn. 96)
Katherine Road (U) church was opened in 1907,
as part of a scheme by which the old church in
Bridge Road, Stratford (in West Ham), was closed
and its activities were transferred to the expanding
suburb of Forest Gate. (fn. 97) Katherine Road, which
seated 1,150, was well filled in its first year. It
developed a strong men's Brotherhood, and three of
its members became Methodist ministers. It was
damaged by bombing in 1941. In 1947, when the
Forest Gate circuit was split up, Katherine Road
went into the London Mission (East Ham). In 1957
it was closed and its members joined those of four
other Methodist churches in the new building in
Woodgrange Road (West Ham). (fn. 98) The Katherine
Road church (corner of Sandringham Road) was
demolished and the site covered with flats.
Sibley Road Welsh Methodist church was formed
in 1945, when the London Welsh Methodist circuit
took over the iron building previously used by the
Welsh Congregationalists. (fn. 99) Some of those who then
joined Sibley Road had previously been members of
the Welsh Methodist church in Cumberland Road,
Plaistow, West Ham.
Presbyterians.
Trinity church, East Avenue, Manor
Park, originated in the 1890s, when Alexander
Thompson, a Scotsman who had previously worshipped at Plashet Park Congregational church,
began to hold Presbyterian meetings at his house in
Victoria Avenue. (fn. 100) With help from the Presbytery of
London North a site was bought in East Avenue,
and in 1900 an iron church, given by Dr. J. A.
Voelker, was erected there. There were early disagreements between the local congregation, which
favoured a conventional organization, and the Presbytery, which advocated mission work of the
'central hall' type. These were settled by a compromise; in 1902 Thomas G. Murray became the
first minister, in 1903 a permanent church was
built, and in 1905 halls were added. By 1909 the
membership was 424, and during the brilliant
ministry of I. Gwessin Jenkins (1910–28) it rose to
600. Under Jenkins's successor there was a sharp
decline, but the church revived after the coming in
1935 of W. Harding Jones. In 1941 the church was
joined by the congregation of Trinity Presbyterian
church, Maryland Point (West Ham), (fn. 101) from which
it took over the name Trinity. From 1941 to 1945
it also accommodated the members of Wakefield
Street Congregational church, whose own building
had been bombed.
The Salvation Army.
The Salvation Army started
work in East Ham about 1900, when they took over
the Holme Road Assembly Room, previously used
by the Congregationalists. (fn. 102) They appear to have
used it until about 1908, when they built the present
(1965) hall in Wakefield Street. (fn. 103) Salvation Army
missions were also held in Katherine Road, c. 1902–6,
and in Crescent Road, from c. 1902. (fn. 104) The last of
these moved in 1913 to Plashet Road, West Ham.
The Greenhill Grove hall, Manor Park, previously used by Congregationalists and Baptists, was
first occupied by the Salvation Army about 1902.
They registered it for worship from 1903 to 1910
and again from 1945 onwards. (fn. 105)
In 1905 the Salvation Army took over a hall in
Carlyle Road, Manor Park, previously used as
Christ Church Free Church of England, and
registered it for worship from then until 1920. (fn. 106)
Spiritualists.
Manor Park church, Shrewsbury
Road (corner of Strone Road), was registered for
worship in 1909, in a building previously used by
the Free Church of England. (fn. 107) The present building
was registered in 1940. This congregation was
probably connected with an earlier one which in
1903 was meeting in the Temperance Hall, High
Street, East Ham, and in 1904 bought the former
Congregational church in Coleridge Avenue. (fn. 108)
Little Ilford Christian Spiritualist church, Third
Avenue, was registered in 1925 and is still in use. (fn. 109)
The congregation was already in existence by 1905,
and between then and 1925 was meeting in Church
Road. (fn. 110)
The Silver Star Christian Spiritualist church was
registered for worship in 1951 and is still in use; an
earlier Spiritualist church on the same site was
registered from 1932 to 1939. (fn. 111)
Other Churches and Missions.
The London City
Mission hall in Plashet Lane (later Grangewood
Street) was founded about 1870. (fn. 112) Under the will of
Thomas Mathews, proved in 1901, it received £250
in trust, for running expenses. The hall was sold
in or shortly before 1937, in which year a Charity
Commission scheme directed that the interest from
the capital, £188 stock, should be used for the work
of the London City Mission in East Ham and
district. (fn. 113) At some time the London City Mission
also had a branch at Wall End, in the old workhouse. (fn. 114)
Manor Park Gospel mission hall was registered
for worship from 1886 to 1897. (fn. 115)
Plashet Gospel mission hall, Park Road, then
newly erected, was registered for worship by
Evangelical Christians in 1887, and recertified by
them in 1924. (fn. 116) It was acquired by the borough
council in 1959 under a compulsory purchase order,
and was subsequently demolished as part of a
redevelopment scheme. (fn. 117)
The All People's church, Plashet Lane, was
registered for worship from 1892 to 1897. (fn. 118)
Woodman (formerly Elizabeth) Street mission
hall, North Woolwich, is a brick building dating
from the late 19th century. It lies near the old
boundary between East Ham and Woolwich, and its
early history may appear in records relating to
Woolwich. It is probably identical with the Elizabeth
Street gospel hall which existed in 1903. (fn. 119) It was
registered for worship in 1952. (fn. 120)
Mizpah mission, King's Road, existed in 1903. (fn. 121)
Swinburne Gospel mission, Sheringham Avenue,
Manor Park, was registered for worship from 1905
to 1913. (fn. 122)
Latimer Hall Martyrs' Memorial mission, Holme
Road, was registered for worship from 1914 to 1935. (fn. 123)
The building had previously been used by the
Salvation Army and earlier by Congregationalists.
Latimer Hall chapel, Boleyn Road, was registered
in 1939 and was still in use in 1965. (fn. 124) That
building had previously belonged to the Primitive
Methodists.
Christadelphians were meeting from about 1914
in Essex Road, Manor Park, and later in Wakefield
Street. In 1930 they registered Shrewsbury Road
hall, which was still in use in 1965. (fn. 125)
Elim Tabernacle, Central Park Road, was registered
in 1926, and was still in use in 1965. (fn. 126)
The Full Gospel Hall, Plashet Grove, previously
the Elizabeth Fry Memorial (Primitive) Methodist
church, was bought in 1934 by the Assemblies of
God, which still occupies it. It was damaged by
bombing in the Second World War. (fn. 127)
Priory Road hall was registered in 1951 by the
Church of God Fellowship (Pentecostal), (fn. 128) and is
still in use.
The Full Gospel Assembly room, Shaftesbury
Road, Forest Gate, was registered in 1952, (fn. 129) and is
still in use.
JUDAISM.
East Ham, Manor Park, and Ilford
District Synagogue, Carlyle Road, was consecrated
in 1900 and became associated with the United
Synagogue in 1902. It was rebuilt in 1927. In 1947
an adjoining building was bought for use as a youth
centre. (fn. 130)
Upton Park District Synagogue, Tudor Road,
originated about 1920, when temporary premises in
Katherine Road were registered for worship. (fn. 131) The
Tudor Road building was erected in 1923, and was
extended in 1939. It has been affiliated to the United
Synagogue since 1923. (fn. 132)
The Plashet cemetery, High Street North, was
opened in 1896, and the East Ham cemetery, Lonsdale Avenue, in 1919. Both belong to the United
Synagogue. (fn. 133)