Earl Shilton - The Baptists

The Baptists

There were Baptists in Earl Shilton from 1651. These dissenters from the established church met in cottages around Church Street and Mill Street as their religion was against the law. During the restoration the Baptists were still under persecution and the Shilton dissenters continued to worship in secret. Eventually Baptist worship became licensed under an act of Parliament. King Charles II’s state papers say that licenses to Edward Cheyney and William Biges of Earl Shilton were granted.

John Goadby died in 1714, and in his will he bequethed to the ‘minister and poor Baptists in Earl Shilton - my close and its associated lands, commonly called Crowhearst. And to take any rents, fines or profits, for the disposal of the said Baptists.

Many generations of Cheneys also worked tirelessly for the Baptists, the last dying in 1815. A Baptist meeting house was erected in 1758, which was enlarged in 1844, while the Sunday school began in 1801.

In 1861 economic disaster struck the village when the American Civil War broke out and cotton could not be exported. The Baptist minister, Reverend Parkinson, was forced to resign through lack of funds. Crowhearst and its land was eventually sold to Mr W H Cotton in 1928 and the money invested in government stock

By 1664 Earl Shilton had thirty-four households assessed for hearth tax, and during the reign of William III in 1687 there were fifty-two houses assessed in the village.

Licence of Cottages used for Worship in Earl Shilton

1720 Jeremiah Parker 1722 Jonathan Johnstone 1725 Joshua Brotherton 1726 Joseph Smith 1731 Samuel Cheney 1760 William Randen 1790 Daniel Harrold 1792 Thomas Green

Note that not all dissenters were Baptists. William Randen was known as a Presbyterian (John Lawrence).

The Baptist Church is still present in Earl Shilton, and celebrated its 360th anniversary with a special service on 22 May 2011. Their website is http://www.esbaptistchurch.org.uk/