Wesleyan Methodists, Neath Circuit Records

Records of the Wesleyan Methodists, mainly the Neath Circuit, 1866-2004, including minutes, 1866-1989; accounts, 1847-1992; schedules; 1910-1965; membership records, 1931-1941; Sunday School records, 1884-1980; church notices, 1915-1921; register of deeds, 20th cent.; Sunday School records, 1896-1909; weekly offerings to renovation fund, 1971-1978; minutes of leaders meetings, 1893-1984; collection journals, 1894-1921; and records of New Road Methodist Church, Skewen, 1942.

The Wesleyan cause began in Wales with the visits of John Wesley from 1739. These visits were mainly exploratory, and he found the Welsh language a considerable barrier. Nevertheless, some ten years after his death, a mission was set up, and within seventeen years fourteen Welsh Wesleyan circuits had been set up. By the end of the century there were Llanelli, Carmarthen, Llandeilo, Tredegar, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil and Abercynon circuits, each containing several chapels, with a minister or team of ministers. By the 1960s many Welsh chapels had closed, and it became clear that the best course was to amalgamate several of the circuits into one large area, and thus the Morgannwg Circuit came into being, stretching from Carmarthen and Llandeilo in the west to Cardiff and Tredegar in the east. These records are relating to the Neath Circuit and other chapels such as the New Road Methodist Church, Skewen which was called United Methodist Church, Skewen until 1942.

Arranged in chronological order.

No restrictions

It is the policy of the West Glamorgan Archive Service to withhold the names of depositors.

Compiled by Annette Strauch for the ANW project. The following source was used in the compilation of this description: West Glamorgan Archive Service, Wesleyan Methodists, Neath Circuit and others Records, catalogue.

A hard copy of the catalogue is available at West Glamorgan Archive Service.

Usual copyright regulations apply.

All records have been retained

These records of Skewen Wesleyan Methodist Church were salvaged by the depositor from the church before its demolition in 2004. Some of the records found were scanned and placed onto a CD ROM which has also been deposited.

Accruals are not expected