GATEWAY BAPTIST CHURCH, WELLINGTON STREET

GATEWAY BAPTIST CHURCH

 After her husband's death Henry Reed's widow, Margaret built the larger church on the Wellington Street site next door to Parr's hotel, as a memorial to her husband, and to ensure his evangelical work in the community continued.

The foundation stone of the Gateway Baptist Church was laid on 20 July 1883. A bible, placed in a copper cylinder was buried underneath. The architect was Frank Tyson, and the building contractor John Todd Farmilo. Walter Hiddlestone came from Melbourne after Henry reed's death and was pastor at the time of the opening of the new church, in July 1885.

An article published in 1929, commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the mission, claimed that prior to the first world war, as many as 1400 people attended services. Whilst such large congregations rarely assemble today, regular services are still held at the church, which continues to address the needs of the local Launceston community within a modern multicultural world, and Henry Reed's legacy remains alive.

Thanks again to Lee for the brilliant picture of the church in its early days.

HISTORIC VIEW OF WELLINGTON STREET