YorkshireFARFIELDFarfieldFriendsMeetingHouse(timgreenCC-BY-2.0)1 TimGreen

Friends Meeting House

The date carved in the stone above the door of this simple meeting house shows that it was built in the same year as the Toleration Act of 1689.

Farfield, Yorkshire

Opening times

Open on the second Saturday in the month 12pm to 2.30pm.

Address

Farfield
Yorkshire
LS29 0RQ

In fact, the plot for the building was given to the Quakers in 1669 by a sympathetic local landowner, with land for the adjoining burial ground given three years earlier at a time when Quakers were denied burial in parish churchyards.

It is a simple single cell building with stone walls and mullioned windows. The roof is stone slated and supported by a single king post truss; the floor is stone flagged. Apart from some loose benches, the only fitting is the oak minister's stand, where visiting ministers would speak to the meeting, of an unusual panelled design with turned balusters.

In the burial ground there is a row of five table tombs honouring the Myers family, who were the givers of the ground. Most Quaker headstones were of a uniform plain design, so these rare features provide evidence of a commemorative practice that the Quakers subsequently discouraged.

The meeting house has not been in use by the Society of Friends for 150 years and is a remarkable survivor of another age. It is left unlocked and can be visited at any reasonable time; a sign invites visitors to picnic in the grounds.

  • Fascinating churchyard

  • Glorious furnishings

  • Social heritage stories

  • Accessible toilets nearby

  • Dog friendly

  • Level access to the main areas

  • On street parking at church

  • Parking within 250m

  • Space to secure your bike

  • Walkers & cyclists welcome

  • Historic Chapels Trust

Contact information

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