The Gadfield Elm Chapel near the village of Pendock in

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...

, England, is the oldest extant chapel of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

(LDS Church). The structure was built in 1836 as a religious meeting house by the United Brethren, a group of breakaway

Primitive Methodists The Primitive Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination with the holiness movement. It began in England in the early 19th century, with the influence of American evangelist Lorenzo Dow (1777–1834). In the United States, the Primit ...

led by Thomas Knighton. In 1840,

Latter Day Saint The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

and apostle

Wilford Woodruff Wilford Woodruff Sr. (March 1, 1807September 2, 1898) was an American religious leader who served as the fourth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1889 until his death. He ended the public practice of ...

preached among the United Brethren; ultimately all but one of the 600 members converted to

Mormonism Mormonism is the religious tradition and theology of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to various aspects o ...

. After the conversions, the structure was deeded to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints by Knighton and John Benbow. As a chapel of the early

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...

, the building was a centre of activity for the church in the

Malvern Hills The Malvern Hills are in the English counties of Worcestershire, Herefordshire and a small area of northern Gloucestershire, dominating the surrounding countryside and the towns and villages of the district of Malvern. The highest summit aff ...

area. Several regional conferences of the church were held in the chapel, and

Brigham Young Brigham Young (; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), from 1847 until his death in 1877. During his time as chu ...

, who at the time was President of the Quorum of the Twelve, spoke there at least once. The chapel was sold by the church in 1842 to help fund the emigration of British Latter Day Saints to America. The building was privately owned until it was purchased in 1994 by the Gadfield Elm Trust, a group of LDS Church members interested in preserving the chapel. The Trust renovated and restored the chapel, and it was dedicated by the church apostle Jeffrey R. Holland on 23 April 2000. In 2004, the Trust donated ownership of the chapel to the LDS Church, and it was rededicated by church president

Gordon B. Hinckley Gordon Bitner Hinckley (June 23, 1910 – January 27, 2008) was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from March 1995 until his death in January 200 ...

on 26 May 2004. The chapel is operated as a historical tourist site by the church and admission to the public is free.

References

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External links

Gadfield Elm Chapel
— official website
Gadfield Elm
— Mormon Historic Sites Registry, Mormon Historic Sites Foundation
Gadfield Elm
— blog about Gadfield Elm by Andrew Mason
Gadfield Elm blog
— collection of personal stories and media about Gadfield Elm {{LDSsites 19th-century Latter Day Saint church buildings 19th-century Methodist church buildings Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints) Churches in Worcestershire History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints History of the Latter Day Saint movement Meetinghouses of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Methodist churches in Worcestershire Former Methodist churches in the United Kingdom Churches completed in 1836 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in England 19th-century churches in the United Kingdom