Foreword
The village of Knaphill, prior to the 1860s was mainly at the foot of Anchor Hill, due to the thriving nurseries in that locality. With the building of Brookwood Asylum and its opening in 1867, houses began to be built at the top of the hill. At the time the only church building in the village was the Wesleyan chapel, but our church was coming into being in the home of the newly appointed Head Gardener at the Asylum, Robert Lloyd.
A hundred years is a long time, and there are not many people who are privileged to be able to look back that long! In order, therefore, to write a history of our church for its centenary, it has been necessary to refer to such records as are available, and also to talk to some senior citizens in order to put on paper their recollections.
This history was originally written in about 1982, by our now retired Minister, the Rev. Jim Sutton, who had done a great job in collating the information available, but if anyone reading this history has additional material, photos or recollections of interest, these would be much appreciated by the webmaster. In any case it is our sincere hope that you will find the reading of it enjoyable, interesting, and informative.
