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Crowds Leaving Park Congregational Church in Accrington (1902)

Members of a non-conformist congregation leave their Lancashire church.

Non-Fiction 1902 3 mins Silent

Overview

The tide of worshippers at this Accrington church, believed to be the Park Congregational Church of the non-conformist Pleasant Sunday Afternoon movement, demonstrates the scale of religious activity in the Edwardian north. Mitchell and Kenyon apparently filmed several churches on their visit to the Lancashire town, and hundreds were reportedly turned away from a screening at the Town Hall.

The Accrington Gazette names five local churches filmed for screenings in early October 1902: St James' Church, St John's Church, New Jerusalem Church and Church of the Sacred Heart and Park Congregational Church. However, the only other Accrington church film in the surviving collection is Congregation Leaving New Jerusalem Church in Accrington.