Documentary Research

A number of readily available documentary sources were consulted, including the Tees Archaeology Sites & Monuments Record, various O.S. maps, and a number of local histories. An initial review of this material produced little information of the building's construction or history, with only Emery's 1990 survey of Durham providing useful constructional details.

Map evidence shows the building to have been constructed some time between 1857 and 1894; changes in the building plan and the addition of later boundary walls can also be broadly identified.

Analysis and Discussion

Although not a requirement of this project, limited documentary research has been carried out. This suggests the building may have been constructed in the early 1870's, as a result of the opening of the North Skelton Ironstone Mine in 1872 and the nearby Longacres Ironstone Mine in 1873, which precipitated the rapid growth of the village of North Skelton (Berwick, 2003).

From map evidence (Appendix (a)), it is likely the building was originally constructed as a Weslyan Methodist Chapel - it is certainly recorded as such on the O.S. 1st Edition map of 1894. This map shows the general building plan of the Chapel; the small front entrance porch is clearly shown as is a somewhat larger rear 'porch' on the north-east corner, and it is likely that the rear door was located in the north wall of this porch. The same basic building plan is also shown on the 1914 and 1971 Edition O.S. maps.

The current O.S. map shows the building with the full width extension, indicating this was added between 1971 and 2003. However, this does not correlate with the information supplied by the current church warden, Mr. Les Williamson, who from personal knowledge and contact with other local parishioners, is of the firm opinion that this 'extension' was constructed at some time during the 1920's or 30's as a cellar and was used by the Home Guard during World War Two. Accessible only from the outside through a door in the north elevation, vandalism and other safety concerns led to this cellar being bricked up in the 1980's.

Whatever the date of build, it seems likely that material from the dismantled rear gable end was re-used in the construction of the extension. A pent roof was added and the original rear door was re-located to the east side with the threshold being built-up with an extra brick course and other timbers to match the interior floor level, which is the same throughout the church.

Despite the probable re-use of original material, the addition of rectangular rather than equilateral-arch windows suggests that either the rear gable did not have such windows, or perhaps more likely that they were damaged during demolition and rendered unusable.

The generally poor build quality clearly marks this extension as being out of character with the original building and a blatant example can be seen in the brickwork on the west elevation, where no attempt has been made to bond the courses together, leaving an obvious and unsightly vertical cement mortar bond.

The building has undergone a number of minor alterations and repairs over the years, perhaps not surprisingly in view of the materials used and the method of construction, though it should be noted that it is the 'extension' that has seen the greater level of alterations rather than the original structure. This is particularly relevant to the various works carried out for the provision of gas, water and electricity to the Prayer room/kitchen area. All of the original brickwork and the top eight courses on the east and north elevations has at some point been rather crudely re-pointed, though noticeably the west extension and the lower north elevation courses have not.

Nevertheless, the building generally is in good condition and retains a number of original features, particularly the pointed-arch windows and a single cast iron air vent in the east elevation. Internally other surviving features include the roof trusses, wall and ceiling panelling, and in all probability at least the first partition screen; the second partition screen i.e. between the Bible Study and Prayer rooms, is likely to be contemporary with the construction of the extension.

With the exception of Emery's 1990 survey of County Durham, the study of corrugated iron public buildings in the north-east of England has generally been neglected or overlooked, both by archaeologists and architectural historians.

These buildings were constructed throughout County Durham to meet the demands of increasing numbers of miners and their families who moved into the area from all over Britain during the massive expansion of the county's coalmining industry in the late 19th century. They were originally seen as being "temporary" in nature, something of a stop-gap until a more substantial structure could be constructed as the community developed. Conversely, in most cases the decline or ultimate closure of a mine would result in a similar decline and contraction of the associated community, thereby negating the need for more substantial public buildings to be constructed to replace the "temporary" ones.

By utilising mass-produced and "standardised" materials, these buildings offered a number of significant benefits from more traditional stone and brick structures. They were relatively cheap, simple to erect (and dismantle should the need arise), and durable; repairs, additions and extensions were also relatively straightforward. That the overall design could be chosen from a catalogue, these buildings may well be seen to be the forerunners of the later 'pre-fabricated' buildings.

Despite the absence of a coal mining industry in Cleveland, this area was nevertheless heavily mined for its ironstone and alum during this same period. The growth of mining communities here appears to have clear parallels with those in Durham, and there is strong evidence that this building, originally constructed as a Weslyan Methodist Chapel, was similarly constructed to serve the needs of a growing influx of miners and their families. This view is supported by the construction of the "wood and corrugated iron" North Skelton Primitive Methodist Chapel in 1881 at the expense of the local mine owners Bolckow, Vaughan & Company. Located almost directly opposite the Weslyan Chapel (Berwick, 2003), this event was also noted in a local newspaper of the time, the Loftus Advertiser, which reported that the construction of the "iron chapel" with seating for 250 people had cost in the region of £350.

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