I first went to Rosslyn Chapel in 1978 when my husband and I moved into the village. We met the Priest-in-Charge, Father Edward Downey, whom we found to be a welcoming and friendly person. However early in 1979 we went to live in Australia through my husband’s work and it wasn’t until our return from overseas in 1985 that I started to attend the services regularly.
I remember how cold inside the Chapel was in Winter, often colder than outside in the fresh air. It was necessary to wrap up warmly in coat, hat, scarf, gloves and boots. During the Winter services I would keep my gloves on and when sitting would rest my feet on the bar under the pew in front to protect them from the draughts swirling around the flagstones.
Often when signing in Winter, my breath would come out in a mist. It was also damp inside the Chapel and some of the pillars and arches had patches of moss. When it rained heavily buckets would be placed on the flagstones to catch any drips leaking from the roof. Previously when mining was still taking place in the Bilston mines, the blasting vibrations would often cause flakes of masonry to fall both inside and outside the Chapel.
The Sunday school was run by the mothers and the weekly sessions were normally held in the home of one of the mothers as there was nowhere suitable inside the Chapel.
Jo Barrow