Methodist New Connexion Chapel Derby Road Douglas Isle of Man

For some five years prior the Methodist New Connexion met at 1 Atholl Street (at one time St Xavier's RC church!). Numbers were always small and it required much debate for the MNC conference to agree to mission the Island. See report in MMH Soc No17. Architect J. W. Firth, Oldham and builder Wm Kelly. Closed 1914 and sold to St Thomas's for use as church hall; became the Red Cross centre which closed in 2008. In July 2011 the Manx National Youth Band purchased the building, with the ground floor being used as a permanent rehearsal venue and the upper floor available for other musical and cultural groups to use on an ad hoc basis.

The IoM Examiner of 19 July 1890 carried an extended description of the opening on the previous Sunday - "the new church has been built from the design of Mr W Firth, architect, Oldham. It is a gothic style of architecture and intended to accommodate about 500 people. The church is built of Glenfaba brick, relieved by Ruabon bricks and tera cotta, having stone tracery windows in front elevations, along with a spire which is rapidly approaching completion, and which will make this building one of the handsomest of its kind in the Island. The interior is composed of nave, gallery, and transepts, the latter being separated from the nave by moveable pitch pine screens, filled in with cathedral tinted glass, and can be thrown open, if needed, for congregational purposes. The whole of the seating and pulpit is of prepared selected pitch pine and presents a very neat and pleasing appearance." One of the small rooms was intended for use as a pipe-organ chamber -"the total cost of the building, including a most eligible site of land, on which to erect a school will be about £2,500." The builder was Mr W. Kelly of Douglas.

Reference           Isle of Man Examiner 19 July 1890