Rev. Percy Myers

In July 2004, we had an enquiry from Trish Myers from Auckland, New Zealand. Trish is researching her husbands family and found Rev Percy Myers' name in our list of ministers. Gerald Sawyer kindly provided the details below which have been sent to Trish.

Rev. Myers came to the Holywell Cross and Staveley Circuit as Superintendent Minister, in September 1945, with pastoral care of Chesterfield Holywell Cross, Chesterfield Stonegravels, Brimington Common, New Brimington Mount Tabor, New Whittington Wellington Street, and New Whittington Cross London Street Church Societies. As Superintendent, he was responsible for the general oversight of 19 churches with the support of 2 other ministers. The Circuit extended from the town centre in Chesterfield, North Eastwards, covering 9 villages. The main occupations were mining, iron founding and heavy industry with an important railway centre dealing with goods and passenger travel.

Holywell Cross was the second largest town centre church in Chesterfield with a membership approaching two hundred. Its members ranged from shopkeepers to postmen. Stonegravels was a small church less than a mile from Holywell Cross, which served the local suburbs. It had some thirty members Brimington Common was one of five Methodist churches in a village of just over ten thousand- It served a mainly working class community about a mile from the centre of the village. Membership was around forty. New Brimington Mount Tabor was a mile from the village in the opposite direction from Brimington Common. All the members were employed at Staveley iron works, one of them being a department manager. Membership was again around forty. New Whittington at that time had a population of around ten thousand, eighty of them on membership of the two churches.

Speaking personally I do not remember him well. However, he appeared to a young teenager to be a kindly, yet dignified gentleman. He was well thought of in the circuit as a good administrator as well as being a good pastor. I enjoyed his preaching.

On his retirement in Selby, he was a recipient of the Royal Maundy. Each year the reigning sovereign gives to a number of men and women a sum of money in relation to the sovereign's age. For example, this year Queen Elizabeth, being 78 years old, gave to 78 men and 78 women, 78 penny worth of tiny silver coins of the type in circulation 400 years ago. Their denominations are 1, 2, 3 & 4 pence. The Church chooses recipients from residents of the Diocese in which the distribution takes place on Maundy Thursday each year. They are selected for the work they have done in service to others. It is regarded as one of the highest honours to be bestowed on an ordinary person. Sadly the Holywell Cross Church was closed in December 1964, the final service being taken jointly by the writer and his wife. The congregation, which had dwindled to less than twelve merged with the nearby Central Church. Stongravels and Cross London street closed sometime in the late 1950's whilst Wellington Street remained open until the mid 1980's. The two Brimington Churches are still maintaining their Christian Witness.

Gerald Sawyer.

Extract from the Directory of Primitive Methodist Ministers and their Circuits. (1. SRN. 187143 018) Born Walthamstow London 1891
Died April 16th 1974
Trained for the Primitive Methodist Ministry at Hartley College Manchester.
Served in the following Circuits; 1917 Selby Yorks, 1921 Beverley Yorks, 1923 Pickering Yorks, 1927 Bolton 1st Lancs, 1932 Derby 2nd 1936 Darwen Lancs, 1938 Kiveton Park S Yorks, 1945 Chesterfield (Holywell Cross and Staveley) Derbys., 1949 Blackheath Birmingham W Mids., 1954 Nottingham North, 1958 Selby Yorks (Supernumary).
For the length of his ministry, it was customary to be invited to an appointment for 3 years with extensions up to a maximum of 7. Rev Myers time in Kiveton covered the years of World War 2.