| In
1852, Edwin H. Bennett and his wife came to reside in Cardiff.
They had a deep desire to commence a meeting on New Testament
lines, and they were joined by a Mr. Bright, who shared their
desire. In a book published in 1901 entitled The History of
Nonconformity it is recorded that ‘a meeting of
Christians commenced in 1852 in a house in Nelson Street (the
home of Mr. and Mrs. Bennett) who call themselves brethren, or
Christians who gather only in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ’.
Adamsdown was the first assembly in South Wales, and possibly in
the whole of Wales.
Numbers
steadily increased, and in 1874 the brethren comissioned the
building of the present hall on the site of the old Adamsdown
farm, situated alongside the main railway line. The building
took three years to complete and was officially opened in
November 1877. About 1882 Dr. Joseph Ledger-Smith, who had just
qualified in Dublin, moved to Cardiff and was received into the
growing fellowship at Adamsdown. He was the local doctor and, as
there was no NHS in those days and much poverty, he would
frequently be calledto a sick patient, and seeing the
circumstances, not send his bill, but often return with vital
provisions at his own expense. He accepted the responsibility of
Sunday School superintendent and because of his deep love for
the children and their parents, the Sunday School prospered and
it is recorded that at that time over one thousand children
attended the Whitsun treat.
At the
beginning of the last century the Great Western Railway provided
a footbridge across the railway lines near the rear of the hall,
so it was decided to reverse the interior. The ‘back’ thus
became the ‘front’ and a new entrance was created so that
hundreds of folk using the footbridge each day would be passing
the new main doors. Just across the footbridge was the
industrial part of the city, and thousands of workmen used this
route to reach the large steel works, timber yards and dockland.
Some of the brethren would meet once a week outside the main
doors of the hall, at six o’clock in the morning, to
distribute gospel literature and have personal conversations
with the men as they finished their night shifts. The Lord
blessed the work and consequently the assembly grew to over two
hundred in fellowship. In the 1923 July edition of The Christian
Worker it is recorded that there was a mothers’ meeting of
over four hundred members who met every Monday afternoon for the
preaching of the gospel.
The assembly
grew and many of the saints moved to the newly developed parts
of the city and helped to establish new assemblies. By 1901
there were seven assemblies in Cardiff, and by 1924 there were
24 assemblies in Cardiff and district and 85 in the whole of
South Wales. In that same year a list was compiled of 2000 names
of believers in the Cardiff and district area who had
associations with the Adamsdown Hall.
But the work
expanded beyond the local area. Then in 1922 Mr. and Mrs. Henry
Spencer were commended to work in the West Indies, jointly by
the Adamsdown assembly and the Handsworth assembly in
Birmingham. Mr. Walter Norris was also commended by the assembly
to full time service, and his ministry was appreciated, not just
in the South Wales valleys where he spent most of his time, but
in many parts of the country. During the summer months he would
team up with Mr. William Trew, and together they held gospel
tent campaigns resulting in new assemblies being established and
others being encouraged.
The interior of
the hall has been modernized over the years but the exterior is
much the same as the day it was built. Gas central heating
installed in 1937 cost £80! In the 1990’s the hall had a new
roof and windows, and more comfortable chairs replaced the
original wooden seating. Though now there are fewer in
fellowship, the work of testimony in the area continues – with
children’s work, ladies’ meetings, literature distribution,
coffee mornings, and a well-attended conference, etc. As we look
forward we take courage from the words of Paul, ‘God is
faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord’, 1 Cor. 1. 9.
www.adamsdowngospelhall.org.uk |
