Printed and Published at the Dover Express Works. 1916.
TO BE FORMATTED
ANNALS OF DOVER.
SECTION FOUR.
THE HISTORY OF RELIGION.
XI. THE ORIGIN OF METHODISM AT DOVER.
Several writers have ascribed the origin of the Wesleyan
movement at Dover to the Rev. Charles Wesley, who
preached in Biggin Street in the year 1760; but the Rev.
John Wesley preached in Dover in 1756. He had preached
at Canterbury eight years earlier; but the 28th of January,
1756, was his first recorded visit to Dover, and it was at that
date that he established his first Society here. The Wesleyan
movement in Dover formed a dominant feature of religious
life in this town during the last half of the Eighteenth
Century, and it will be interesting to trace its rise and
progress as shown by the entries, which John Wesley made
in his journal, of his annual visits. The first on record
runs as follows: —
"Wednesday, 28th January, 1756. — 1 preached at noon at Dover
to a very serious, but small, congregation. We afterwards walked
to the Castle, on the top of a mountain. It is an amazingly fine
situation. From here we had a clear view of that vast piece of the cliflF
which a few days ago divided from the rest and fell down upon the
beach."
After a three years' interval, there is the following
entry : —
"Wednesday, 19th September, 1759. — I preached at Dover in the
new room which is just finished. Here also the hearers increaie,
some of whom are convinced and others comforted daily."
The next year he came in December, and he was
methodical enough to come about the same time of the year
in subsequent visits. He wrote in his journal : —
"Wednesday, 3rd December, 1760. — I rode to Dover [from
Canterbury]. Who wouUl have expected to find here some of the best
singers in England? I found, likewise, what was better still, a serious,
earnest people. There was a remarkable blessing among them, both
in the evening and the morning, so that I did not regret having been
wet to the skin on my way to them."
After an interval of four years, Mr. Wesley wrote a
brief note to the effect that he visited the Society in Dover
on Wednesday, December 12th, 1764. His next entry has
more details: —
"Tuesday, 3rd December, 1765. — I rode to Dover and found a
little company more united together than they had been for m&nj
years. While several of them continued to rob the King, we seemed
to be ploughing upon the sand; but since they have 'cut ofl the
right hand,' the Word of God sinks deep into their hearts,"
THE HISTORY OF RELIGION. 201
This refers to the rebukes administered to members of
the Dover Society, who were smugglers, and it was probably
to show his displeasure that Mr. Wesley had for three years
omitted his annual visits. At this time the room at the
Cooperage in Queen Street had been abandoned, and the
Society had its meeting house in Limekiln Street, two
dwellings having been thrown into one, making a good-sized
room. The next entry in the journal runs thus: —
" Wednesday, loth December, 1766. — I went to Dover. At all
the sea ports we have multitudes of hearers. I preached at Dover."
The next two years he wrote . —
" Monday, 23rd November, 1767. — In the afternoon I rode from
Canterbury to Dover ; but the gentleman I was to lodge with was
gone a long journey. He went to bed well ; but was dead in the
morning. Such a vapour is life ! At six I preached, but the house
would by no means contain the congregation. Most of the officers of
the Garrison were there. I have not found so much . life here for
many years."
"Wednesday, 30th November, 1768. — I rode to Dover, and came
in just before a violent storm began. It did not hinder the people ;
many were obliged to go away after the house was filled. What a
desire to hear runs through all the sea port towns wherever we
come ! "
In 1769 Mr. Wesley was too pressed with other affairs
to pay his annual visit to Dover. When he came in 1770
he made an entry in his journal of special local interest,
thus : —
"Wednesday, 5th December, 1770. — We went to Dover where,
with some diflSculty, we climbed to the top of Shakespere's Cliff. It
is exceedingly high, and commands a vast prospect both by sea and
land ; but it is nothing so terrible in itself as it is in his description.
I preached to a very serious congregation in the evening as well as
in the morning."
The next year he journeyed via Canterbury and Ashford,
and after mentioning that he preached at those places, his
journal records: —
"Wednesday, 4th December, 1771. — Hence we hastened to
Dover, where the house was quickly filled with anxious, well behaved
people. Here I found L H 's Preachers had gleaned up most
of those whom we had discarded. They call them ' My Lady's
Society,' and they have my free leave to do them all the good they
can."
The reference above is to the Preachers of Lady
Huntingdon's Connexion, who had that year re-opened Zion
Chapel after it had been closed for a time, owing to the
discontinuance of the Presbyterian services. The preachers
in question were two young men named William Aldridge
and Joseph Cook, who had been trained at one of Lady
202 ANNALS OF DOVER.
Huntingdon's Colleges for Preachers. The Huntingdonites
were a branch of the Methodists, founded by Mr. George
Whitfield, who separated from Mr. John Wesley on a point
of doctrine ; and it may be that it was on this account that
Mr. Wesley felt keenly the unfriendliness that was manifested
towards him by these young men at Dover. He made
reference to the subject again in his journal on his next visit
to Dover, thus: —
"Tuesday, December 8th, 1772. — I went on from Canterbury to
Dover. The raw, pert, young men that recently came hither (vulgarly,
though very improperly, called students), though they have left no
stone unturned, have not been able to tear away one single member
from our Society. I preached here two evenings and two mornings
to large and much affected congregations."
Staying two days and preaching four times at Dover
was a departure from Mr. Wesley's usual practice, taken,
no doubt, to strengthen the bonds of unity in the Dover
Society, owing to the counter attraction.
Mr. Wesley did not come any nearer than Canterbury
in 1773; and on his visit in 1774 he met with a mishap. In
his journal he wrote : —
"Tuesday, 6th December, 1774. — I preached at Dover. As I
was setting out from thence on \Vednesday morning a waggon
jostling us, disabled our chaise. Our coachman went back to procure
another, saying he would soon overtake us. He did so after we had
walked nine or ten miles, and brought us safe to Canterbury."
It may be mentioned that the class book made up at
this visit showed that at Dover there were 34 members, and
for purpose of comparison it may be interesting to mention
that the nine Societies then in Kent had 282 members,
distributed as follows: —
Dover
Canterbury
Ashford
Sandwich
The journal mentions the next visit thus: —
"Tuesday, 12th December, 1775. — I preached at Dover; as
many as could squeezed into the house, and the rest went quietly
away."
The next year, 1776, he visited Dover, and briefly
journalised the fact : —
"On Tuesday, December 17th, I preached at Dover;
Wednesilay, about eleven, at poor, drv, dead Sandwich, but I now
found more hope for the poor people. '
Mr. \\'esley did not come to Dover in 1777. About
34
Margate
-. 34
57
Faversham
... 16
II
Sittingbourne
... 8
8
Chatham
... 68
Sheerness
... 46
THE HISTORY OF RELIGION. 2O3
the time of his usual annual visit he was very busy collecting
materials for the first number of his Magazine. On Monday,
7th December, 1778, he wrote: —
" I took a little journey to Canterbury and Dover, and was
much comforted amongst a loving, earnest people."
In 1779 he makes no special note; but under date,
November 29th, he says he started on that day, Monday,
to visit the Societies in Kent, and returned to London on
the following Sunday. Under date, December 4th, 1780,
he made a similar note as to his visits to the Kent Societies,
but gave no details of Dover. In 1781 his annual v'sit was
omitted ; and there is a note that on Tuesday, November
loth, 1782, he preached at Dover, but no details. In 1783,
he preached at Dover on November 25th ; and again at
Dover on Tuesday, December 14th, 1784. On the 29th
November, 1785, he preached here, and noted in his
journal : —
"I found at Dover also a considerable increase of the work
of God."
In 1786 he did not come further than North Kent. On
the 23rd October, 1787, Mr. Wesley preached at Dover. He
remarks : —
" In the evening I strongly applied the Parable of the Sower
to a crowded audience."
He preached at Dover again the next momaig, and then
went on to Sandwich, which he had not visited for fifteen
years. On his next visit to Dover his journal has the
following : —
"Tuesday, 25th November, 1788. — Though it blew a storm and
was piercing cold, we were sufficiently crowded at Dover, where the
work of God is very lively and continually increasing."
The last reference to Dover in John Wesley's journal
is as follows: —
" Monday, 14th December, 1789. — I went to Canterbury and
preached in the evening. ... It pleased God to give me
uncommon liberty of spirit, as also at Dover the next evening, where
the New House, large as it is, was far too small, so that many could
not get in."
This was the last visit of the Founder of Methodism to
Dover. Several writers have said that he came in 1790 to
(/pen the new Chapel in Elizabeth Square ; but the visit was
jiaid on the 14th December, 1789, and the new Chapel is
what he termed the New House. It is true that there is
nothing said in his journal about any special dedication; but
204 ANNALS OF DOVER.
he never made any ceremony except in the case of the larger
London Chapels, his chief concern being to have the title
deeds accurate. Besides, at that time, he was a feeble man,
in his 87th year. He wrote in his journal a fortnight later: —
" I am now an old man, decayed from head to foot ; my eyes
are dim; my right hand shakes much; my mouth is hot and dry
every morning. I have a lingering fever almost every day. My move-
ment is weak and slow. However, blessed be God, I do not slack my
labour. I can preach and write still."
It is of some interest to note that the mahogany used
in the construction of the pulpit in Snargate Street Wesleyan
Chapel is the identical wood of the pulpit in the " New
House " in Elizabeth Square, in which the Rev. John
Weslev preached on his last visit to Dover, 14th December,
1789/
THE HISTORY OF RELIGION. 205
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