*Historical* This eye-catching iron structure in Park Lane was known as a ‘tin tabernacle’. Once commonplace, these buildings are increasingly rare to find. Infact according to Historic England, there’s believed to be only 80 buildings like this left across the UK, with just 20 listed.
If we’ve peaked your interest, read on to discover more history and images.
So what do we know about it? It’s situated at 47 Park Lane in Carshalton and was constructed in 1904.
Originally a church, it used corrugated iron cladding first developed in England in 1829, and is an early type of prefabricated design (where it’s produced off-site).
They were used as mission churches in the British colonies, being quick to construct, but also across the United Kingdom as new churches were formed. They were a temporary measure until stone or brick churches could be built.
There is an almost identical and intact design at Hertfordshire – that one dates 1880 and is Grade II listed. The one in Carshalton appears to be slightly more decorative.
The Hertfordshire church is described as “one of only two remaining with a spire and bell”. At present, we can’t find a reference for the other one.
The Carshalton iron church did have a bell, but it’s not known if it’s still in situ.
One congregation member remembers: “Mr Batchelor played the organ and when he moved Dorothy played the piano and Reg rang the bell”
Another remembers: “I went to Covenanters together in the hall behind the church.”
The Carshalton ‘tin tabernacle’ was purpose-built and was known as the snappily-titled Emmanuel ‘Reformed Episcopal’ Church, and in 1926 it became part of the ‘Free Church of England’.
The building suffered bomb damage and in the late 1940s/early 1950s it looks as though concrete blocks were used as a repair.
There was another tin tabernacle which we think stood in the area of 154 – 132 Stanley Park Road. It was called the Church of the Good Shepherd and lasted from 1900 until circa May 1930, when the new church was built. The current Grade 2 listed church is at Queen Mary’s Avenue, Carshalton.
There was an iron church in Clyde Road Wallington which was moved to Beddington Gardens in 1908, when it became the hall of a new church that was built. It was there as of 2008, but it’s not clear whether it still exists.
All Saints Carshalton had a corrugated iron mission hall in The Square. It subsequently burnt down, and now private homes are on this site.
Emmanuel church closed in 1972, and it became a nursery. It still is, 52 years later.
It’s lovely to be able to see a building like this still in use and going strong, when so many have been demolished.
It’s taken quite a bit of research to find this information, and it’s likely more info will come to light. If you’ve got anything to add please share it below (this gets shared across social media so useful to keep notes together). A recommended paper we’ve not seen is called ‘John Swindell, Rough notes concerning the history of Emmanuel Church, c 1972 [Sutton Archives 4/5/5a-c]’. 1. 2. 3
the one in Stanley Park Road is still there behind the Sainsburys local and was used as a school……I think its now part of a garage/ MOT centre.
This interesting map shows the position of the church, which was to the left of the Sainsbury’s. The old garages look to me like they may have once been an old stable block…