Who we are

The Congregational Memorial Hall Trust was founded in 1872 to create a memorial to those Christian ministers who were forced out of their positions in the Church of England following the Act of Uniformity in 1662. The fund established by the Trust was used to create the Congregational Library and encourage and assist Biblical studies. Since 1872 the Library has occupied a number of sites in London and until recently was lodged with Dr Williams’s Library in Gordon Square, London, who managed the Congregational Library collections on behalf of the Trust. A search for a new home for our collections continues.

Welcome to our website. We hope you’ll find it useful, inspiring and informative. If you have any questions, please contact us.

News

George Whitfield and Nonconformity

At the Friends’ event on 22 November 2022 Dr Digby James spoke about the life and mission of George Whitfield, illustrating his lecture with pictures and photographs. Friends who would like to see a film of the lecture can do so by logging in to the Friends area and clicking on the link. Dr James’s […]

The London Missionary Society and David Bogue

At the Friends’ event on Tuesday 22 November, Dr John Parry spoke about The London Missionary Society, David Bogue and his connections with Scottish Congregationalists. Friends of the Congregational Library can see a film of the Dr Parry’s lecture by logging in to the Friends’ area of the website. Dr Parry’s lecture is in the […]

Temorary Reading Room

Following the closure of Dr Williams’s Library and during the search for new Congregational Library premises, arrangements have been made for the Congregational Library collections to be consulted at a temporary reading room in Trinity Congregational Chapel, Brixton Any requests for access to the collections should be directed to our Archivist, David Powell at david.powell@conglib.ac.uk

Looking after your church history

Interested in looking after your Church history – see our guidance here.

More about the Reformation and Non-conformity

The way that Non-conformity grew out of the Reformation and influenced more than three hundred years of British and global history is often hidden from the national narrative.

From John Owen, born in 1616, who lived through the turbulent years of the Civil War, to the great non-conformists of the 19th century, who ministered when dissent from the Established Church was itself a bar to education and public office, and into the early 20th century, with its terrible wars and upheavals, they shaped the world in which we live now. Read more

The Congregational Library