Lower York Street / St Columba’s Mission Hall

History of Mission Hall

approx position

1885

Mission Hall established by Miss Mary Elizabeth Watts, Mrs Macnaughton Egerton Brownlow and Miss Clifton

1895

Mission Hall bought for St Columba’s Church by two sisters, Mrs Margaret Gibson and Mrs Agnes Lewis. They had founded Westminster College in 1899. P M O’Neill wrote about the two sisters in :St Columba’s York Street Mission”: “They  would come down for the Sunday evening service in their chauffeur-driven car and would take the Women’s Meeting on Friday afternoons. They would often talk about their travels and had a coloured relief map of the Holy Land hung in the women’s room.”

There were activities almost every night. There was a Boys’ Brigade, a Band of Hope, run by Dr Alex Wood at the Mission. In 1908 it had a membership of 130. From these groups grew a Young men’s and Young Ladies’ Bible Class on Sunday afternoons and a large Sunday School.

1913

Lower York Street Mission Hall, Mrs Spaxman of 141a York Street, caretaker

St Columba’s Mission, York Street c. 1917-1921 (family photo)

1922 Bible Class, St Columba’s Mission, York Street

1923 Joint Bible Class and Club was founded. It had a strong social side with club meetings on Mondays and Friday with games of badminton, football, cricket, billiard, lexicon and draughts. There was also a canteen run by the girls. Members directed their own dramatic and musical evening. There was a friendly sick club, members paying in 2s to start with then 6d a week from which they drew money if they were ill. (See Down Your Street, 1984, p90)

Harold George Dockrill believed to be in photo.

1930s – 1950s

HQ of 14th Cambridge Columba’s Scout troop

Newspaper cuttings about St Columbas’s Hall & the Club

St Columba’s Club 1of 3

St Columba’s Club 2of 3

St Columba’s Club 3of 3