Swalwell, Gateshead
Swalwell Presbyterian Hall
Last Updated:
2 Sept 2024
Swalwell, Gateshead
This is a
Hall
54.954363, -1.682782
Founded in
Current status is
Extant
Designer (if known):
Messrs Badenock & Bruce
Now a business venue named Comma House
The later Presbyterian Church & Hall in Swalwell stands just over the road, and I have to tell you it is gorgeous. I love 19th century red brick buildings, and this one is an absolute hallmark, with a slight renaissance tinge ✨
It was built using Birtley bricks in 1898 and designed by Messrs Badenock & Bruce - a seemingly short lived partnership with little other work of note. It comprised a hall to seat 500, an infants classroom and a yard.
The Presbyterian congregation at Swalwell is one of the oldest in the region, having first founded in 1733 with their first church built in 1750. Before that, a cottage was probably in use. The Ebenezer Chapel over the road opened in 1750, and probably supported worship for pitmen in this area. It was for the Presbyterians of the area, many of which I’m sure were Scottish migrants seeking work. This was pretty much the same time John Wesley was propelling his vision of strict and pious doctrine. A church opposite was built which was much larger in keeping with the growing settlement, so this became a secondary chapel at some point for meetings and children’s services. Services of this nature ended around the turn of the 20th century, though it was retained as a Sunday school. It was finally knocked down in the 1970s, which is sad given if it lasted a couple more decades it would have been listed.
This place became necessary as the congregation continued to increase. The steel works and paper mills were still doing a roaring trade, and the village was flanked by two collieries at the end of the century. Inevitably as mentioned earlier, Scottish migrants will have been drawn to the area who were generally Presbyterian. This was a period of serious growth and success in Swalwell.
I’ve also read Thomas Summerbell, one of the early Labour MPs, held meetings here in 1908. He received a hearty reception here, discussing care for children, the unemployed and there aged. He spoke of the “Feeding of Children Act” to provide aid to hungry families. He also proposed a policy of afforestation to put unemployed men back in work (he was in the Foresters Friendly Society). A vote of confidence was also held for Keir Hardie and succeeded.
The building is now named Comma House, a business centre.
Listing Description (if available)
Both these Ordnance Surveys depict Swalwell between the 1910s and 1940s.
The first was just a decade after the terraces sweeped Swalwell, as they did in most areas on Tyneside. You'll notice some dramatic changes from the present quite quickly, for example the now demolished Crowley Works which was a core employer of the settlement. Swalwell Colliery was still operating in the north as well as Axwell Colliery in the south, and the more traditional 19th century cottages still dominated the centre of the town at Hexham Road.
These cottages started to dissipate by the 1940s, and the settlement spread east with semi detached properties and a Methodist Church. Some of the older cottages on Market Lane were being cleared by this date also. Our Hall is illustrated on both maps, first as "Hall" and second as "Ch.", meaning church.
We only need to look at the 1890s map to visualise the striking transition of Swalwell from a standalone village into a conurbation of Greater Gateshead. Our hall was a couple of years away from being built, but the site is earmarked as a vacant plot. You'll see a seperate coal working - Edith Pit, which was cleared in the 1900s to make way for housing. Much more of 'old' Swalwell dominated the low lying parts of the village including the Swalwell Brewery. Brewery Bank and Brewery Lane is still named after it.
The Swalwell Presbyterian Hall in 2024
The Presbyterian Hall and the old church seen on this photograph from 1900s when these houses had just been constructed. Swalwell Colliery can be seen in the distance.
An artists impression of the hall in 1898, before completion.