Ifield Quaker Meeting invites local people to share in its celebration of the Meeting House’s 350th Anniversary on Saturday 19th September
Ifield Quaker Meeting House in Langley Lane, Ifield, was completed in 1676 at a time when Quaker Meetings remained illegal (many from the Meeting were imprisoned in nearby Horsham jail and otherwise penalised). It was the first purpose-built Quaker Meeting House and is the third oldest in the country and has a fascinating story to tell of its connections with the early Quakers – and some later ones, too.
Doors open at 10am, with an opportunity to look around the historic building and find out about its history and connection with the early Quakers. There will be talks on The People of Ifield Meeting, the History of Ancient Ifield and a playlet, ‘Fox and his Friends’ presenting early Quakers and connections with Ifield. There will also be music from Bob Boquci and his bass clarinet, sessions of the Downsmen Barbershop Chorus, and readings of various poems and prose. Lunch is provided.
The Meeting House, built on land given by local blacksmith Robert Robinson, owes its existence to a visit by George Fox to the area in 1655 where he held a Meeting at nearby [Richard] Bonwicke’s Place farm. Its success led to a regular meeting every Sunday, which was the first in Sussex generating the need for a Meeting House. Ifield Meeting possesses a chair donated in George Fox’s Will. William Penn lived for some years in Sussex and likely addressed the Meeting, also writing a tract replying to the local Church of England vicar who was persecuting Quakers.
Members buried in the quiet, small graveyard include Sarah Robinson, founder of the first free school in Crawley in 1852, which is now Ifield Community College, and members of the Cheal family, whose name was attached to a local garden centre and still to the adjacent roundabout. There is also Alice Seeley Harris, who before becoming a Quaker was a missionary and documentary photographer who helped to expose the human rights abuses in the Congo Free State under the regime of King Leopold II of the Belgians.
Ifield Meeting Friends look forward to greeting you and sharing in a historic moment for the Meeting, the House and the area.