Almeley Wootton Meeting House
Triumphs and failures: 350 years at Almeley Wootton by Stella R Sterry
‘His diary tells us of his triumphs and, with honesty, of his failures.’
It was in 1672 that a local landowner, Roger Prichard, a glover, former soldier in Cromwell’s army, and then active Quaker, decided to gift a cottage to Friends in Almeley. Quakers were already in the village, with Meetings in Roger’s own home. These were described as ‘Large, sweet and comfortable’, but the new cottage gave some permanency to the gatherings.
It is not known if the cottage was purpose built. Perhaps not, as a bread oven was uncovered during renovations in the 1950s. But at the time Meeting was illegal, so maintaining a semblance of domesticity might have been a way of avoiding scrutiny. Either way, the gift was made legal with a deed of 1675, together with a burial ground. Interestingly the deed is signed by Roger and his wife Mary – though only with an ‘X’ on her part.
For many years the Meeting House consisted of a single room, and followed the black-and-white style common to Herefordshire, as it still does. There is a tradition that tenants once shared the cottage. We like to believe the story that one of them, Betty Francis, used to roll potatoes over her floor if she felt Meeting lasted too long.
Numbers attending Meeting have fluctuated. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries they were high. This was due largely to the evangelical revival led by two sisters, Elizabeth and Hannah Southall, descendants of Roger himself. Tent Meetings were held, and large numbers attended. A missioner was appointed, an earnest, zealous man named William Hall. He visited the poor and sick, helped with literacy, and delivered tracts. His diary tells us of his triumphs and, with honesty, of his failures.
We are now a worshipping group of, on average, twenty a week. The premises have been enlarged and in 2013 the Roger Prichard room gained a good kitchen and new toilets.
So why should a Southern Marches Meeting receive a proclamation and greetings from the governor of Pennsylvania, complete with gold seal? Because two Quakers from the Meeting’s early days played significant roles in the founding of that state. Edward, Roger’s son, was one of several Quakers who purchased land in the new colony, hoping to establish a semi-autonomous Welsh barony. Edward witnessed William Penn signing Pennsylvania’s Frame of Government.
Roger’s son-in-law John Eckley emigrated to Pennsylvania and became a provincial judge. He died of smallpox in 1690 and is buried in Arch Street Quaker Burial Ground, Philadelphia. Arrangements are being made for a joint Zoom Meeting for Worship with Friends there.
The proclamation acknowledges the part played by Almeley Meeting in historic events. A history of the building, on display in Hereford, shows records of the Sufferings local Friends experienced, especially Edward Prichard, who had crops and goods taken from him equivalent to several thousand pounds now.
But the Meeting is keen to emphasise its place in the modern world, with a summer full of events. Inspiration comes from the past, but we believe that we have much to offer in these troubled times.
