Quakers in Hemel can trace their local history to the late 17th century when they worshipped and were buried at Wood End, on the outskirts of Hemel Hempstead. The Act of Toleration of 1689 granted freedom of worship to Protestant nonconformists and to allow these groups to have their own licensed meeting houses and worship publicly, and so, in 1718 local Quakers purchased land behind The Bell Inn, in the High Street and built their Meeting House and Burial Ground.
Quakers figured prominently in the life of the town in Victorian times. The Cranstone family had an iron foundry business. Their lasting memorials are the White Bridge in Gadebridge Park and the drinking fountain in Boxmoor. The gates of the Old Town Hall were designed by a member of the family. The first Fire Service in Hemel Hempstead was privately funded by the family. Lefevre Cranstone is known abroad as an important artist, particularly in the USA, but never achieved recognition in Britain. Members of the prominent Cranstone family are interred in the burial ground and are integral to Quaker and Hemel’s history.
There is a repeat of this event on Thursday 18 September, please see the separate event.
