Birmingham, England

Oldest Mormon Chapel in the World Still Standing

Gadfield Elm Chapel, in Worcestershire (in our Mission), was of great significance in the early history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the British Isles, acting as the focal point of Church activity for thousands of Latter-day Saints until the majority emigrated to the United States to fulfill their dream of building a new Zion in the US. In 1840 President Brigham Young preached at Gadfield Elm which, at the time, was the only Latter-day Saint chapel in the world.

 

Gadfield Elm Chapel

The chapel was built in 1836 by a fundamentalist Christian group, the United Brethren, and was deeded to Wilford Woodruff, on behalf of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1840 by John Benbow and Thomas Kington.

Almost the entire congregation of the United Brethren joined the church by baptism in 1840.  As the new converts heeded the call to gather to Zion the building became redundant and was sold, with the proceeds being used to assist with the emigration of the Saints to the US.

Gadfield Elm chapel, built of native stone and standing in the quiet countryside of Worcestershire, is the last surviving memorial to the United Brethren, a religious group who joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints en-masse upon hearing the 'restored gospel' message. It had a seating capacity of just 100 people.

The chapel served the people who built it and the Latter-day Saints who inherited it. It stands as a reminder of one of the greatest Latter-day Saint missionary experiences of all time.

Birmingham - A Short History

 

Birmingham is Britain's second largest city. It began as a Saxon village and dates back the early 12th century.  Known in the Victorian era, as the "City of a 1000 Trades" and the "Workshop of the World."  Brum, as locals call the city, is enjoying a 21st century resurgence as a great shopping and cultural destination. 

Birmingham was at the heart of the United Kingdom's industrial revolution, and its wealth was built upon the multitude of trades that were spawned. This led to a massive canal network, with more miles of canals than Venice or Amsterdam. Birmingham's first canal was opened in 1769.

 

Much of the city center was destroyed during World War II.  Since the 1990s, Birmingham has been undergoing a radical change and many of the post war buildings have been replaced. The majority of the city center is now pedestrianized, and the canals cleaned up to make for attractive waterways. 

Being an important manufacturing center, Birmingham was a major target during World War II, and suffered heavily from bombing raids. Targets included the Castle Bromwich aerodrome plant where the Spitfire and Lancaster planes were made and the Austin factory at Longbridge which manufactured military vehicles and airplanes. After London and Liverpool, Birmingham received the most damage from air raids and 2,241 people in the city died. Their names are commemorated on the Tree of Life Memorial near to St. Martin’s Church. 

For you chocolate lovers, Birmingham is home to Cadbury's Chocolate.

Among the city’s famous residents is JR Tolkien, author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, who spent his childhood in Sarehole, Birmingham, which is said to have been the model for the Shire, home of Bilbo in the book The Hobbit.

Other big cities are green with envy when you mention Brum's 6 million trees, more parks than any other European city, a record-breaking 14 consecutive gold medals form the Chelsea Flower Show and the National Britain in Bloom awards.

Trentham Gardens

Birmingham's Central Library is the city's busiest building and Europe's largest public library, which lends 8 million books each year.

The population of Birmingham is approximately 1 million people; 6 million people live within 50 miles of the City.  There are 3 universities and over 450 schools in the City.

Victoria Square hosts one of the largest fountains in Europe, with a flow of 3,000 gallons per minute, it is known as "The River."

We will be surrounded by hundreds of years of amazing history.  We both have roots in England and Wales and are excited to see some of the sites they saw and knew:

 

Aston Parish

 

Coventry Cathedral

 

Conway Castle

 

Belvoir Castle 

One of our long standing "bucket list" items is to visit Stonehenge.  Guess what?  Stonehenge is in our mission - oh yeah!  It is a prehistoric monument and is one of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is the remains of a ring of standing stones set within earthworks. It is in the middle of the most dense complex of Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments in England, including several hundred burial mounds.

Archaeologists believe it was constructed from 3000 BC to 2000 BC.

 
Stonehenge