Upper Chapel

Upper Chapel stands in Sheffield city centre on Norfolk Street. This Grade II listed Unitarian chapel is the oldest non-conformist place of worship in the city. Built in 1700 of brick, it originally faced Fargate with side walls still surviving from that time. In the 1840s the chapel was turned to face across fields and the roof was raised. John Frith completed the alterations in 1848, while later additions include stained glass windows by Henry Holiday. The chapel’s history reflects Sheffield’s religious dissent. After the Great Ejection of 1662, vicar James Fisher and about a tenth of his parishioners became Dissenters. Timothy Jollie led the dominant group by the 1690s and his congregation built Upper Chapel. By 1700 it had a congregation of about 1,000 people, roughly a sixth of the city’s population. Inside, the chapel shows layers of change. The 19th-century interior includes work by ministers such as George Vance Smith and Brooke Herford. Channing Hall nearby, designed by Flockton and Gibbs and completed in 1882, is named for William Henry Channing. The trustees still own freehold properties across Sheffield.