
Marshall Hudson, a butcher with his own shop in
Millbank Terrace, started the Redcar
Christian Brethren Assembly about 1910, and meetings were held above
an Arcade. The Gospel Hall is mentioned in
Kelly's Directory of
1913 as a place of worship in Redcar. In the 1920’s
it moved to rooms above Boots the
Opticians in Redcar High Street.
In the 1930’s the group of
Christians started to meet in rooms above Goodswen’s the Butchers, still in
Redcar High Street, in an era when on a Sunday people spent time
reading the Bible and going to church. Children went along to the
Sunday School.
In the mid-30’s the local
Christians moved into the Gospel Hall on the corner of Regent
Street and Lord Street (Regent Street no longer exists
following re-development of the town centre). These premises had
previously been a Primitive Methodist Church, mentioned in
Bulmers Directory for 1890 as a place of worship. In the 1930's the Hall
was known as Elim Hall, but to avoid confusion with
the local Pentecostal Church, the name was changed to Regent
Street Gospel Hall. The numbers in fellowship were never
great peaking at about 45, although on a Sunday evening for the
Gospel Service many more could be present. Two "mid-week" meetings
were held - on a Monday and Wednesday - but as the Assembly numbers
reduced, the Wednesday meeting was stopped and a time for prayer and
Bible reading was concentrated on to a Monday evening.
During this period there was a
monthly missionary prayer meeting which has continued up to the
present day. From time to time there would be visits from
Missionaries as well as full-time ministers of God's Word, e.g. the
late Albert Leckie used to come each year for a week to
encourage the saints in their Christian faith. Another regular
visitor was the late George Tryon, who every year came to
teach children the Word of God through his "Treasure Trail"
meetings; up to 100 children could be present every night at this
special time of meetings convened for them.
The Women used to have their
own meeting on a Wednesday afternoon, and many of the local
ladies came under the sound of the Gospel, and some into the
fellowship of the Assembly.
The internal of the building
underwent significant modernisation in the 1970's. The ceiling was
lowered, a new platform provided, and with "comfy" chairs and
carpeting, it was probably "the best hall" in Redcar. Each Sunday
morning the Christians gathered around the Lord's Table to remember
Him in the way that He had asked His first disciples to do in the
breaking of bread and the taking of the cup. In total the Assembly
was in the Regent Street Hall for about 65
years. |