Southwick was one of the earliest and largest centres of the Baptist movement in Wiltshire, giving rise to many other Particular Baptist communities in the area; this part of the West is known for its strong Baptist tradition. Until the end of the C19 the village had no Anglican Church; the civil parish of Southwick was formed in 1866, before which time Southwick was part of the parish of North Bradley. The community was active by the mid-C17; at the Western Baptist Assembly Meeting of 1655 the Southwick representatives were said to be numerous and influential. The Southwick Baptist church remained strong throughout the reigns of Charles II and James II, when dissenters were prevented from worshipping freely; congregations of up to 2000 met at various times in a hollow at nearby Witch Pit Wood, in a field, and in a meeting house known as Pig Hill Barn. The Southwick Baptists were encouraged by the preacher Andrew Gifford, who did much to keep Baptism alive in the West Country at this time, and who ministered to the group in Witch Pit Wood, and in 1672 Thomas Collier, the renowned itinerant Baptist preacher, was licensed as a teacher at Southwick and North Bradley. In 1676 it was recorded that 340 of the 440 inhabitants of Southwick and Bradley were nonconformists, and many Baptists came from other parishes to worship at Southwick; after 1689, and throughout the C18, Baptist congregations were established in neighbouring parishes - several as branches of the Southwick church. In 1709 the first Baptist chapel was built at Southwick, within the site now occupied by within the site now occupied by the car park, which lies to the north-west of the present church. The foundation stone of the present church was laid on 15 May 1815, and the building was dedicated on 31 October that same year; in the late C19 a vestry/schoolroom was attached to the church. In 1861 a second Baptist chapel - the Providence Baptist Chapel - was established in Southwick by a former pastor of what was then known as the Old Baptist Chapel; the old church retained a diminished but loyal following, which revived during the later years of the century. The formalisation of the open-air baptistery in 1937, on the site of a historic baptismal pool a short distance to the north-west of the church, demonstrated the continuing support of the congregation, though the baptistery is no longer in use (2010). Today the church serves an active Baptist community.
Standing at the published cords:
How many large diamonds are there? A
How many large windows? C
Now Head to the Final at: N51°17.(A+A)(A+C)(C+2) W002°13.(A+A)(C-1)(A+1+C)
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