The Old Chapel, Skipton

The Old Chapel is a historic building in Skipton, a town in North Yorkshire, in England.

John Wesley preached in Skipton on several occasions, and although no lasting group was formed, a Wesleyan Methodist Church group was established in 1787. In 1791, the society constructed a small chapel on what is now Chapel Hill in the town. By 1811, the congregation had grown and a larger building was needed. The original chapel was demolished and a new one constructed, perhaps using some of the old materials. By the 1860s, the congregation had grown further, and in 1865 the Water Street Wesleyan Methodist Church was built.^[1] The old chapel was converted into a school, which remained in the building until 1891.^[2] The building was later converted into a house, and was grade II listed in 1978.^[3]

The chapel is built of stone and has two storeys. The entrance front has three bays, a string course, a frieze, a cornice, and a dentilled pediment. The outer bays each contains a doorway with panelled jambs, a semicircular fanlight, a lintel and a cornice, and between them is a flat-headed window. On the upper floor, and along the sides, are round-arched windows.^[3]