Bible Christian Chapel -Former
Burra, SA 5417
Church Information
| Church Name: | Bible Christian Chapel -Former |
| Church Previous Name: | - |
| Denomination: | Methodist (Wesleyan and Other) |
| Street Address: | Kingston St & Bridge Terrace, Burra SA 5417, Australia |
| Suburb: | Burra |
| State: | SA |
| Postcode: | 5417 |
| Foundation Stone Laid: | unknown |
| Foundation Stone Notes: | No Foundation Stone details are known. Information/photographs are invited. A plaque records: First Bible Christian - Chapel in Australia - Opened 1850. A plaque on the front wall records: Former - Bible Christian - Chapel - The congregation erected this small chapel in 1850 as the first Bible Christian Chapel in Australia. It was enlarged in c 1856. In 1860 the Chapel was replaced with a larger building at the corner of Bridge Terrace & Bridge Street. The original chapel was subsequently used as the Bible Christian Sunday School, and later as a Greengrocer's Shop... |
| Date Opened: | 00-12-1849 |
| Date Closed: | 00-00-1930 |
| Email: | admin@churchesaustralia.org |
Comments
The former Bible Christian Chapel, Burra opened in 1849 and closed about 1930.
"When this chapel opened in December 1849, for Burra's Bible Christian Methodists, it was the first Bible Christian Chapel in the colony (and possibly in Australia). Methodism in England had undergone a series of changes during the early 1800s, including the appearance of Bible Christian Methodists, predominantly in the villages of East Cornwall and North Devon. It is not surprising then, that many of the Cornish miners who came to Burra were of this faith, and that Bible Christian work in South Australia began in Burra. The stone chapel, claimed to seat 200 people, was erected on land set aside by the South Australian Mining Association for the Bible Christians. During the 1851-52 Victorian goldrush, barely a man was left in the congregation and funds were scarce, but by 1853 many miners had returned to the town and the chapel was free of debt. - In 1859, when the Rev. James Way was appointed Superintendent, a religious revival resulted in 300 converts and over 5000 [?] children attending Sunday School. To accommodate this growth, a new church, seating up to 600 people, was built on a corner of Bridge Street (demolished 1909). The chapel continued to be used for Bible meetings. In 1900 Burra's three branches of Methodism amalgamated to become the Methodist Church. It appears to have ceased being a church in the early1930s [Sourced from: https://cdn.environment.sa.gov.au/environment/docs/burra_religious.pdf]. More historical information/photographs of the church/congregation are invited. Photographs uploaded 27/2/2025.
