History
"A short history" (adapted from FW Cooper of Melksham & District Historical Association)
The Church was founded in 1669 when a number of people first met in John Webb's shearing shop. There are few, if any, written records available from this time, as it was dangerous to keep written records until 1714.
The first record of minutes starts in 1798.
At this time, many of the members were in the cloth trade, including Samuel Cooke of Lacock, John Webb, James Hiscocks, John Browne and Thomas Chapman of Bradford.
The first meeting house is referred to as having been recently erected in a licence dated 1714. The current church is built on the same piece of ground.
Zebulan Marshman, a native of Broughton Gifford and a maltster by trade, was one of the signatories to this licence and is believed to be the first pastor of the church.
Prior to this there would have been a variety of visiting pastors.
Although obviously strong to begin with, the church suffered decline and when
Miss Mary Ledyard came to Melksham from Trowbridge in 1766, there were only 10 members (8 women and 2 men).
Under the leadership of the Ledyard family the church began to thrive again; by 1798 there were 53 members when Mr Thomas Ward became minister.
Sadly, by 1771 the old meeting house was too small and in a bad state of repair.
The present building is believed to have been erected around 1776; galleries were added in 1795 to accommodate the increasing number of worshippers and were further enlarged in 1839.
The first wedding at the church, of John Cleaver and Esther Little, took place on 2 August 1837; Rev Joshua Russell officiating.
Outstations were opened at Forest Chapel in 1840 and Beanacre about 1846.
Attendance peaked in 1850, with 165 members. Sunday School consisted of 50 teachers for 340 children.
In 1863 the church joined the newly-formed Wilts & East Somerset Baptist Association
The chapel at Forest, on the site of the present petrol filling station at the junction of Snarlton Lane and Melksham-Sandridge Road, was sold in January 1906.
The Sunday School building which fronts onto the main road today, was built between October 1908 and January 1909, and opened for use on 28th February 1909. The Sunday School cost just over £1,822 to build and was financed by a loan, which was paid off by 20 June 1916.
As a result of the proximity of the RAF Camp at Melksham during World War II, 16 Jamaican servicemen were baptised in the church on 3rd June 1945.
The chapel at Beanacre closed at the end of December 1966.
In the early 1980's the Church received a substantial legacy from the Pocock family who had emigrated to Canada. This enabled a complete renovation of the building in which worship is held (referred to as the sanctuary or chapel). Pews were removed and replaced with chairs, the woodwork of the pulpit and gallery had varnish removed to highlight the natural wood and the whole area was redecorated and carpeted.
During this work it became clear that parts of the flooring had to be renovated and the electrical wiring replaced. Every effort was made to retain the original architecture. Many members supported the work by giving time and gifts towards this major project, the total cost of which was approximately £40,000.
On 31st December 1999, while the many across the world were marking the new Millennium with fireworks and street parties, the members held a party in the church hall followed at midnight by a New Year's Eve worship service which was broadcast on radio by BBC Wiltshire Sound.
Due to the benevolence of the owner of the Melksham Active Net website, the church published its first pages on the internet in December 2000.
In January 2002, a part of the restructuring of the Baptist Union of Great Britain, the church became associated with the West of England Baptist Association. On this date, 57 individuals were in membership with an average attendance at worship of 48 (morning) and 22 (evening). On Anniversary Sunday, 25th April 2004, there were only 5 children who attended crèche and Junior Church.
2006
It became evident that much work was needed on our Grade II listed building, so we immediately started fundraising. With the help of some grants (including from the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme and the Wiltshire Historic Churches Trust) and from assets held by the church, God provided for the work to go ahead. New windows, a new floor, repair to plasterwork, and necessary work on the roof, including insulation and a complete re-decoration of the whole building was undertaken, resulting in a beautiful and safe place of worship.
2009
Further repairs and insulation were applied to the roofing above the Church Room and Coffee Room.
Anniversary Sunday took place on 29th April 2012. At this time, we had 17 children attending Funshine Club (on Friday evenings at 6pm) and Junior Church on Sunday mornings.
2019 to 2023
The church experienced a further decline in membership and attendance, from 41 in 2019 to 26 in 2023, which was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
2023 - date
The church enjoyed a variety of visiting preachers, and in June 2025, appointed an entirely different leadership team. During this period, it was revealed that further extensive repairs were required to maintain the building. Reserves built up since 2023 meant that some of the work could be financed immediately; however, grant applications became an integral part of the Leadership responsibilities.
If you would like to help financially, please contact us.