Memory Lane

Many of these photos were shared from the Idle-Memories-Past-and-Present Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/797974760307782/

Other photos were shared with us by members of the congregation.

Third Upper Chapel showing the second cemetery

Upper Chapel Sunday School, the cemetery in the images was built over when the new Fourth Chapel was constructed. The stones were placed around the edge of the car park and then moved to the old cemetery across the road when the Fifth Chapel was built. The end of the Third Chapel can just be seen on the right of the second photo.

Map from 1906 showing the location of the burial grounds from the above photos

1908 Cricket Team

Idle Congregational Chapel Football Team 1908

Idle Congs Hockey Club 30 January 1926

1930

1930s Harvest Festival – John Gomer Williams
1951
Upper Chapel Sunday School Procession outside the chapel Whit Monday 1953
Whit walk 1953
Building works at Idle Congregational Church in 1957: (left) Mr Haigh, (middle) Christine Dean, daughter of (right) Kathleen Garnett, wife of Francis Garnett, MD of G Garnett & Sons

Upper Chapel Concert Group c1960

28th August 1993

Ceremonial ribbon cutting by lifelong member Pat Wilson at the Official Opening of the 5th Upper Chapel
25th September 2021

Easter Garden 2022

Platinum Jubilee Display 2022

Harvest Festival 2022

Macmillan Coffee Morning October 2022

Remembrance Sunday 2022

Christmas Day 2022

Harvest Donations for Bradford North Foodbank September 2023

Christmas Day 2023

On Sunday 4th August 2024 we were pleased to welcome an “old boy” to lead our worship.

Revd Stephen Thornton, as he is now known, was born in Idle and was a regular attendee at Upper Chapel. During this time, he had a calling to become a Minister, and this came to fruition. He recently celebrated 60 years of service in the United Reformed Church and whilst having ‘retired’ from being a Minister at Fleet in Hampshire, regularly leads services around the south coast area. Stephen was instrumental in writing the URC’s Children’s Charter and the setting up of the Windermere Centre, a residential training centre and retreat. Stephen has kept in touch over the years and  in recent years we have been receiving regular phone calls enquiring how the new church was coming on in the planning and construction stages, then as to how it is progressing and growing since we opened. Having been part of the 3rd and 4th Upper Chapels, Stephen was very keen to come to preach and meet the people of the 5th Upper Chapel.

Harvest 2024

Donations for Foodbank Christmas Appeal 2024

Easter 2025

Coffee Morning for RNLI and Salvation Army 2025