Wesley Uniting Church Hobart

Wesley ‘in the city’ Uniting Church

In June 2013, our Adelaide Painters had the privilege of restoring a beautiful piece of antique furniture in the Wesley Uniting Church in Hobart. The surface of the furniture had been damaged and was stained with ink. We sanded the surface down, removing the ink stain. This was followed by staining the prepared surface, and once dry, applying the final finish of French polish. See below:

History

Wesley ‘in the city’ Uniting Church in Hobart, Tasmania has a long history. The original chapel was one of the first in Australia. It is one of the longest continuously worshipping congregations in Australia. The original Melville St Chapel (now Wesley Hall) opened in 1825. The current building based on the Wesley Chapel in City Road London was built in 1840. There are a number of documents outlining the history in the Wesley Hobart museum.

Wesley Hobart Museum

Housed in chapel and church buildings erected on the Melville Street site in 1825 and 1840, Wesley Hobart Museum is one of Australia’s foremost Uniting Church working museums. It was was established in 1927 as a “memorial to the departed trustees who faithfully served their generation”. Today, the museum’s volunteer and professional staff conserves and interprets a remarkable Methodist heritage collection comprising tangible and intangible cultural elements received from the Wesleyan and Primitive Connexions and including the catalogue and archive records of Australia’s first public library 1825 to 1845. By arrangement, museum staff can assist visitors and inquirers with access to Tasmania’s (Van Diemen’s Land) Methodist Archive dating from 1820. Photo left: The original display room established 1927 showing some of the objects.