An iconic building that was the scene of a bloody massacre 140 years ago has been given a £350,000 facelift.
The historic Tyddyn Street Church, in Mold, has been transformed in a renovation that has turned it into a community and arts centre as well as a church.
It was built in the early 1860’s as the Free Church, an independent Congregationalist church, and it was the scene of four deaths in the Mold Riots in 1869 when there was a confrontation between local miners and soldiers of the Kings Own Chester Regiment.
A crowd of over a thousand were protesting at the jailing of seven miners who had attacked the manager of a mine in Leeswood and when they began to throw stones the soldiers were ordered to open fire.
Four people were killed, one of them dying in the churchyard, and, according to Mervyn Phillips, the former chief executive of Clwyd County Council, who has overseen the redevelopment of the building, the church steps still bear the marks of the bullets.
But he and the Rev Brian Acty hope the transformation will bring people back to the church for more peaceful reasons as a centre for community activities and the arts.
The work has been carried out with funds from the sale of surplus property, individual fundraising and the support of a number of important grant funding organisations, including rural regeneration agency Cadwyn Clwyd who have provided £14,823 from the Flintshire Key Fund which aims to help bring new life to the community buildings of rural Flintshire.
The money, which has paid for the lift to the spectacular new mezzanine floor, has come from the Rural Development Fund for Wales 2007-2013, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the Welsh Government.
Mr Phillips said: “Work started in January and the project has gone very well with the building designed for use both as a place of worship and for community use by the architect, Robin Wolley.
“He has done a great job and so have B and M Builders, from Ruthin, so that we now have a church that should be fit for the next 100 years.
“We want it to be a real hub for the community and it has been fitted with a first floor gallery that overlooks the main part of the building and which is accessed by a fine oak staircase and the lift.
“The renovation gives us good diabled access, a new kitchen and meeting rooms and it will provide us with a chapel arts centre with a capacity of 120 which is open for practice and performance by community groups and for use as a small conference centre.
“We also hope to be able to mount an exhibition including the events around the church during in the Mold industrial protests when the militia opened fire on the crowd who had turned out to support the local miners.”
Andrew Redfern, Cadwyn Clwyd Project Officer for the Flintshire Key Fund, said: “It is fantastic that we have been able to help give a new lease of life to such an historic building and one that has been the scene of one of the most dramatic moments in local history.
“The aim of the fund is to improve facilities in the rural area of the county and we have £475,000 to spend, all of which we intend to allocate by the end of this year.
“This represents a major investment in the many rural buildings that play a key role in their local communities and aims to give them and the organisations which use them a new lease of life.
“The added benefit of course is that most of the money will be spent locally with local contractors doing the work and so this gives an added and important extra benefit to the rural economy.”
Architect Robin Wolley, who specialises in church restoration and renovation, said: “The idea is to keep the original spatial concept of this Grade Two listed property and its very fine original features.
“This is a lovely example of an historic Victorian building and by the use of painting and lighting and a sensitive appreciation of the interior we’ve managed to make it live again.”
The Rev Acty added: “They really have transformed the church and it is now full of light and life and we feel it is a fantastic amenity for the local community.
“We are having new lighting and a new sound system, there is disabled access and new parking and groups like the Mold Players are planning to rehearse here and we’re hoping many more organisations will approach us to use it because it is so versatile, it could even hold small business conferences.”
The Tyddyn Street Church is keen to hear from local organisations who would like to make use of their facilities and those interested can contact Church Secretary Margaret Jones 01352 757049.
Cadwyn Clwyd continues to look for innovative projects to support which help safeguard the area’s natural, cultural and heritage assets and maximise their economic potential for local businesses and communities.
To find out more or share your idea for a project call 01824 705802 or email [email protected]
