Long before the neighbouring Cheltenham began to flourish as a spa town, Winchcombe was important in the 8th century as a capital of the Anglo-Saxon King Offa and for its two abbeys which until Tudor times attracted large numbers of pilgrims. John Wesley passed through the town in March 1779, though without mentioning it by name, and preached in an orchard at nearby Gretton on 'a mild, still evening'. The first Winchcombe society was formed in 1785 by John Staite, described as a farmer and staymaker, whose parents William and Margaret are buried in the parish church and who remained a leading figure among the local Methodists until his death in 1838 at the age of 84. His house later became the 'John Wesley Café'.

A site for a chapel was obtained in Cole (or Cowl) Lane in November 1794 and the first building was registered as place of worship on 29 October 1795. It was extended just two years later and was replaced by a new chapel in 1810 on the same site, despite the disadvantage of adjacent pigsties. In the 1850s, along with other societies in the Cheltenham Circuit, Winchcombe suffered membership losses through the Wesleyan Reform movement and it was not until 1883 that the site for a new chapel was obtained in High Street, with the stonelaying taking place on 3 December 1884.

Notable among the Winchcombe Methodists was the missionary family of Henry Bleby. The Rev.J. Agar Beet , a notable Methodist scholar, was stationed in the town 1869-1871.

Category: Place
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