Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
Reverend Charles Wicksteed (1835 - 1851)
Minister at Mill Hill
Impact on Mill Hill
Charles Wicksteed was born in Shrewsbury on the 10th of June 1810 (Lupton,1920, p80). At 18, Wicksteed decided to study at the university of Glasgow under Dr Daniel Williams. This gave him the education to become a pastor himself and preform his own sermons to a brand-new congregation. He arrived at Mill hill chapel in 1835 and “having met with general approval, he accepted the call to Leeds and commenced his duties on 20th December” (Lupton, 1920, p80). Charles Wicksteed was getting paid £400 pounds a year to preach and perform sermons at Mill Hill Chapel, the equivalent of £63,691.52 in 2024. He was married a year later to Jane Lupton at Call Lane Chapel, this was one of the first chapels in Leeds where people could get married under the Marriage Act of 1836.
After the chapel’s financial position was secured by the Dissenting Chapels Act of 1844, Wicksteed oversaw the rebuilding of Mill Hill in its current form. The new building was completed in 1848.
Retirement
In 1851, Wicksteed's health started to decline and he had to withdraw from his job on the orders of his physician. As he confessed to his diary, “I have endeavoured to keep all my strength and interest for my pastoral and pulpit duties” (Lupton, 1920, p. 83). This shows even though he was unwell he still wanted to perform his sermons in his congregations because his believed in his work. He did not want to leave because he still had a strong connection to Leeds, having married his wife there and having served at Mill Hill for over 15 years, he would have built a strong friendship with the congregation. Wicksteed moved to a farm in north Wales where he ran a school, then to Croydon where he eventually died in 1885. Even after his passing his legacy lived on through his family, such as his son who became a famous engineer and maker of children’s playground equipment.
