The design of Nineteenth-Century Wesleyan space: Re-reading F.J. Jobson's Chapel and School Architecture

F. J. Jobson's Chapel and School Architecture as Appropriate to the Buildings of Nonconformists (1850) has conventionally been used to demonstrate the architectural patterns of nineteenth-century Wesleyan chapels. However, this emphasis has overlooked elements of its recommendations and motivations. This article proposes an alternative approach. Positioning Jobson's text within theories of space, it challenges the conventional importance given to his physical recommendations by discussing how the function and users of Wesleyan spaces also influenced his designs. Examining Jobson's designs for Sunday schools and vestries in addition to chapels, this article considers the relationship between Wesleyan theology and Jobson's proposed designs