No. 491 - Gawler Methodist Church

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Gawler lies about 3 kilometres south of Ulverstone of which it is now virtually a suburb. Nathaniel Kentish, a surveyor, named the Gawler River after Governor George Gawler of South Australia, from which the settlement later derived its name.

Gawler’s Methodist church was originally located at Gravel Hill outside Ulverstone where it was established in 1874 as a Primitive Methodist church. [See No. 365] In 1901, the building was moved to Gawler where it briefly continued as a Primitive Methodist church until the Methodist union of 1902.

Before the church reopened at Gawler it underwent renovations including lengthening the building by 10ft to accomodate an additional three rows of pews.

Given Gawler’s close proximity to the Ulverstone Methodist church, services ceased in the late 1960’s. In 1972 the building was taken to Turners Beach to be used as a Sunday school alongside a Methodist church recently established there. Both buildings are still at Turners Beach but have been converted into a house in recent years. Subsequent renovations have made the Gawler church virtually unrecognisable.

The Gawler Methodist church [undated]. Photo supplied by Craig Broadfield


Sources:

North Western Advocate and the Emu Bay Times, Thursday 19 September 1901
Advocate, Tuesday 15 July 1924, page 4

Stansall, M. E. J and Methodist Church of Australasia Tasmanian Methodism, 1820-1975 : compiled at the time of last Meeting of Methodism prior to union. Methodist Church of Australasia, Launceston, Tas, 1975

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