Betty and Judas Garrat of Longston, buried Fairfield, Buxton 1790?

[Rosie (MaccHistorian)]

A friend would like me to discover whether there is any truth in the story that the former Methodist Church in Waterswallows Road, Fairfield, Buxton (labelled "Fairfield Church Hall" on Google Maps) once had a burial ground. He has a photo of a gravestone which he believes was taken in the grounds behind this building. The inscription on the stone is:

Betty Garrat, daughter of William and Judah Garrat
departed this life March 28th 1790 aged 20 weeks
Also Judas? Garrat of Longston
Died 26 December 1790 aged 31

I haven't made any progress other than finding the Wikipedia entry which says:
John Wesley visited Fairfield in September 1784. Fairfield Wesleyan chapel on Waterswallows Road was built in 1868, replacing the first Methodist chapel which was erected in 1844. After 1887 it was used as the Fairfield Local Board Town Hall.

and the My Wesleyan Methodists website which says:
"The small chapel illustrated here was the second Wesleyan chapel in Fairfield and seated 216. It was replaced by a larger chapel designed by John Mills of Derby in 1886."

I wonder if the date of 1886 is a typo and they mean 1868? But the Wesleyan Methodist website implies that the present building was the third chapel on the site, and there was a chapel prior to the one built in 1844. I cannot find any information about whether there was a burial ground there, and where to find any records for the chapel.

I'm not familiar with Derbyshire research so would appreciate any suggestions. Thank you.

[BumbleB]

Have you tried to make contact with the chapel, to ask them the question?

[hepburn]

https://www.rootschat.com/links/01rtp/ 


Quote.    'We believe the Chapel did NOT have a graveyard.

    Note: any church within an urban environment may have had its graveyard closed after the Burial Act of 1853. Any new church built after that is unlikely to have had a graveyard at all.'

[Rosie (MaccHistorian)]

Have you tried to make contact with the chapel, to ask them the question?

Sorry for not making it clear, according to the Wikipedia article I quoted, the Methodist chapel closed in 1886 and from 1887 the building was used as the Fairfield Local Board Town Hall.

[Rosie (MaccHistorian)]

https://www.rootschat.com/links/01rtp/ 


Quote.    'We believe the Chapel did NOT have a graveyard.

    Note: any church within an urban environment may have had its graveyard closed after the Burial Act of 1853. Any new church built after that is unlikely to have had a graveyard at all.'

Thank you, that's a useful website which I hadn't previously seen. However, the comment about the chapel not having a graveyard refers to the later Methodist Chapel a few hundred yards away, and not the one I am interested in which was in Waterswallows Road. I understand that this later Methodist Chapel closed two years ago, its congregation having dwindled to just eleven members.

Edit: a link on that page does refer to the Methodist Chapel I am researching and that page also states 'We believe the Chapel did NOT have a graveyard.'
I can only conclude that the gravestone could have been moved there from another location.

[ChrissieL]

Very few Methodist Chapels had burial grounds.  You could try the Buxton Local History Society.
Also, The Methodist Archives and Research Centre (MARC) is located within the John Rylands Library in Manchester and has a wealth of information about Wesleyan Methodist Churches

"In 1791, as part of a restructuring following John Wesley’s death, Methodist circuits were grouped into districts, analogous to Anglican dioceses. The MARC contains an extensive collection of district records, especially for the Wesleyan Methodists, which constitutes the best source of detailed local information about British Methodism held by any repository."

Chris

[Rosie (MaccHistorian)]

Thank you, Chris. I'll try the John Rylands Library; but I'm leaning towards my theory that the gravestone actually belongs elsewhere.

[hepburn]

So it could have come from a nearby church, St Peter's?

[spendlove]

Hi,

On Ancestry

There is a burial at Tideswell, Derbyshire of Judith GarrEt, 29th Dec 1790 the wife of William GarrEt of Litton.

Baptism at Tideswell of Eliz Garrett 9th December 1789 dau of William & Judith of Litton

You can also see images on Familysearch connection to start is

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-DTS9-NG9?i=684&cc=1911752

Cannot find burial of Betty/Elizabeth

So perhaps the photo is in church yard at Tideswell!