History

300 years of open, inclusive spirituality
Bury St Edmunds Meeting House Sketch

Bury St Edmunds Meeting House has hosted gatherings of religious dissenters, for over 300 years

Worshipers have gathered at our site since 1711.Due to laws and customs at the time, the term “church” was associated with Anglican congregations.  “Meeting house” became one of the names used by dissenting groups for their buildings of worship.  When it was founded, our Meeting House was home to a Presbyterian congregation. It acquired a Unitarian persuasion – which it retains today – toward the end of the eighteenth century.

Here are some key dates about the development of our congregation and the growth of Unitarianism in the local area. For more information about the history of Unitarianism and the key figures that were influenced by it, download the full timeline.

Download the full timeline

  1. 1704

    Dissenter and novelist Daniel Defoe, most famous for “Robinson Crusoe” worked as a state spy in Bury St Edmunds to pay off debts, lodging with Presbyterian John Morley

  2. Foundation 1711

    Bury St Edmunds Meeting House – built for Presbyterian dissenters – opens on Churchgate Street

  3. 1717

    Framlingham Meeting House opens.

  4. 1755

    Joseph Priestley becomes minister of the dissenting congregation at Needham Market, Suffolk, ut upsets members with his unorthodox views

  5. 1773

    Beginning of the immensely long (until 1829) ministry of Samuel Say Toms at Framlingham Meeting House, during which time the congregation developed a Unitarian outlook

  6. 1801

    Dr Nathaniel Phillips becomes the first avowed Unitarian to serve as minister at Bury St Edmunds Meeting House

  7. Legal recognition 1813

    MP William Smith, a Unitarian, successfully persuades Parliament to repeal the statute against anti-Trinitarians. Being Unitarian is now legal in Britain

  8. 1880

    Death of abolitionist Thomas Cooper, a former minister at Framlingham Meeting House

  9. 1881

    Goodwyn Barmby dies. His funeral takes place in Framlingham Meeting House and he is buried in the town’s public cemetery.

  10. 1928

    Formation of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches

  11. 1944

    Establishment of the National Unitarian Fellowship (NUF).

  12. 1975

    Full restoration of the original 1711 Meeting House

  13. 1991

    Further restoration of the Meeting House

  14. Marriage equality 2013

    Same-sex marriage legalised in England and Wales – for the first time, Bury St Edmunds Meeting House can conduct legal marriages for same-sex couples

  15. 2020

    Environmentalist and philosopher Rupert Read speaks to a packed audience at Bury St E Meeting House, following the Extinction Rebellion actions in 2019. (January)

  16. Innovation 2025

    Launch of the Unitarian General Assembly’s Innovation Fund