No. 844 - Chigwell - Salvation Army Hall

Chigwell is a northern suburb of Hobart approximately 20 kilometres from the city. It was built and named by the Housing Department in the 1950s. It takes its name from "Chigwell House", the home of William Gore Elliston in the 1840s.

The former Salvation Army Hall situated on Arunta Crescent has been closed for many years and the building was converted into a house in 2007. The building has also been used as a Boy Scout hall.

As a relatively recently established place of worship, there is very little information about the Chigwell Hall. As information becomes available this article will be updated.

The Companion to Tasmanian History has the following concise summary of the history of the Salvation Army in Tasmania:

“The Salvation Army had a seminal link with Tasmania. Launceston businessman and philanthropist Henry Reed, living in London, gave William Booth over £5000 to establish the Salvation Army on a firm footing in about 1870. In 1883 the Salvation Army Launceston Corps began operating, and corps were formed in Hobart, Latrobe, Waratah and other towns. Marches by these 'militant servants of Christ' through the two main cities with loud music attracted the larrikin element or 'roughs', who exploded flour bombs in the Salvationists' faces or threw mud and beer. Some Salvationists were arrested for marching without permission or refusing to desist from making excessive noise, but the 1891 visit of General Booth ensured the success of the Salvationists. They worked in gaols and courts, and their social work included managing child endowment, running soup kitchens in the winter and during depressions, and distributing clothes. Maternity hospitals were opened in Hobart (1897) and Launceston for unmarried mothers and other young women 'to whom life had been unkind'. During the Second World War Salvationists ministered to the troops in military camps, organised community singing among rural workers, and, in Hobart and Launceston, opened accommodation for women”.

“After 1945 the Salvation Army responded to new social problems by extending its services into assisting the homeless, missing persons, drug, gambling and alcohol abuse, disability and migrant services, employment and aged accommodation, and helped in emergencies like the 1967 bushfires”.

Additional information about this church is most welcome as all articles are continually updated. I can be contacted through this page or my Facebook page "Churches of Tasmania" which is linked here: Churches of Tasmania.

            The former Salvation Army Hall on Arunta Cresecent. Photo credit: M.J. Quigley



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