Chelmsford, The Wesleyan Church 1898

A Memory of Chelmsford.

This building I remember all too well. I had started working for a firm of demolition contractors, and they had the contract to pull it down. I was not very experienced but you soon picked things up as you went along. You had to learn quickly and safely, because there was not a lot in the way of health and safety aspects then. I remember only too well when we had to get onto the roof of this large building and carefully takes apart the tiles to get down to the roofing timbers below. There was just a tiny problem; the church as you can see is located very close to the river. When you were up there you were only too aware that down below there was a narrow foopath that ran alongside the church. Pedestrians were protected from the river by an iron railing that ran the depth of the church. So you had to work safely, because if you slipped you had to hope it would be in the river, and not on the spikes of the railings! When it was demolished a brand new supermarket and offices above it was constructed. This was the site of Caters stores, but that has long since gone. Nowadays it is the home for Burger King, with the offices still above. But you can still detect the Caters name on one side of the building.