After a few years as “ecclesiastical gypsies” by 1893 the Mission Committee realised that they needed a permanent home and towards the end of that year the site on which Grosvenor House now sits was bought by the Committee treasurer... And on 25th October of the following year the first Grosvenor Hall was opened...Or rather the Central Hall as it was formally called... But it quickly became known as the Grosvenor Hall by all who used it, and passed on the name officially to the second building that replaced it, in 1927.
At first an adjacent building to the hall on Glengall Street was rented to host the social work and smaller meetings, but this was quite a costly arrangement, and so two years after the hall was opened an annex was built that not only increased the size of the main hall to 3000 if needed (slightly more than we need today) but also offices and smaller meeting rooms.
But the cost of all of this was massive in those days. Crawford Johnson and his faithful treasurer Thomas Shillington, who arguably was the man who both had the original vision for the mission and did most to make it all happen, had to struggle constantly to make ends meet... and sadly the Methodist Conference weren’t much help... Crawford Johnson repeatedly said that it was the “pence of the poor” that bought this site and kept the work going.
Johnson retired in 1905, but was in quite poor health by that time, largely worn out by the work and the worry and he died 9 years later, the same year as Thomas Shillington... But at least he had a retirement. His successor R.M. Ker carried on the work until 1926, when he was elected as President of the Methodist Church... But during his presidential visit to Cork he died...
By that stage plans for the new Grosvenor Hall were well advanced, but sadly the day that had been set aside as the day for laying the foundation stone of the new hall became the funeral service of R.M Ker in Donegall Square church, a massive affair attended by the Lord Mayor and City Chamberlain, the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church and many other dignitaries with thousands of people crowding the streets as the cortege made its way out to the City Cemetery, pausing by the building site for the new hall, with work paused for the day.
The work resumed and the Ker Wing on Glengall Street, which was dedicated to the social work of the mission, opened the following April, with the main Hall opening on 22nd September. There were two bronze plaques installed to commemorate these first two influential superintendents, and when the Grosvenor Hall was replaced by Grosvenor House in 1997 after a brief sojourn in May Street Presbyterian, those bronzes were installed in the hallway.
That building also included the Gallagher Chapel, mentioned in a previous post, named in order to remember another influential Superintendent, whose work could be the subject of another post in its own right... But in the current carpark, which largely takes in the footprint of the previous 2 halls, the tree and small memorial garden, with a silver birch planted in memory of Ted and Hannah Howard, and under which the ashes of a few other congregational members have been interred, reminding us of all those who once worshipped in the halls that once stood on that site, and who served, not only in those buildings but across this city and beyond, seeking to share the gospel by word and deed.
And in the closing events of this past week repeated reference has been made to the large wall-hanging in the groundfloor hall of Grosvenor House that has hosted the congregation since 1997 until its closure today. As part of the closing service a plaque was handed over by one of the three ladies who created this significant piece of community art to the current CEO of BCM Mr Nicky Conway, as a symbol of the handing on of the legacy and ethos of the congregation to the Mission as a whole. On that plaque it says:
seek the welfare of the city...
Jeremiah 29: 7
From the year after Belfast was declared a city in 1888, Belfast Central Mission has sought the welfare of its citizens, with the twin objects of Promoting Christian Faith and the Alleviation of the Effects of Poverty. Since 1894 it has operated out of three different buildings on this site, the first two each known as the Grosvenor Hall, because they both housed a 2000+ auditorium, which hosted not only services of worship, but both sacred and secular concerts and other events.
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On the 9th November, 2025 that congregation finally ceased meeting in this building, following their 136th Anniversary Service, but Belfast Central Mission continues to serve, both the people of this city, and those well beyond its boundaries, as they seek to provide compassionate care to people at their point of need.
The Hall at the heart of a vibrant new city
seeking to reach out a simple helping hand
to whomever, wherever, whatever the need
with no requirement of a qualifying creed.
A Mission formed in local brick-fields which supplied
the red bricks that built this city, from iconic
university to humble terraced houses,
but where those without home nor hope slept fitfully.
A Gospel proclaimed boldly on Custom House steps,
after carefully cut Saturday night movies,
or accompanied by choirs and big brass bands, but
mostly in quiet acts of kindness and courage.
The cavernous auditorium is long gone,
together with many of the saints that filled it,
whilst the spires of other empty sanctuaries
stand like testamental tombstones on the skyline.
The city has changed, its roads and routes rearranged;
Both bombs and developers leaving lasting scars.
But a city is not built with bricks and mortar:
It’s rendered in compassion; threaded through with grace.
Rev David A. Campton November 2025
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