The membership cards for the Primitive Methodist Church on Bank Road shown here were given to two of the Lill sisters, Edith and Annie. Edith's card dates from 1902, whilst Annie's was for 1910. The family lived on New Street, having moved to Matlock in the early 1890s^[1]. One of Edith and Annie's brothers, Charles William, joined Matlock Bank Primitive Methodist Church "Young Mens' Class" and belonged to the Matlock Primitive Methodist Prize Choir^[2]. Another brother, Sydney, was killed in the First World War. Edith lost her husband in that war, too; she had married James Elston Slater at the church in 1907^[3]. The marriage of Annie to Bertram Crawford Wild in 1915 also took place at the church. Annie's death was recorded in a church magazine a few years later.

These cards, which were signed by John Burton who was the Minister at the time^[4], reveal a little about the history of the Primitive Methodist movement. After breaking away from the Wesleyan Church they held their first Camp Meeting in 1807 and formed their first class in 1810.

References (coloured links are to transcripts or more information elsewhere on this web site):

^[1] The family were living in Matlock at the time of the 1901 census.
^[2] Charles William Lill is amongst those on the photograph of Matlock Bank Primitive Methodist Church "Young Mens' Class" and also the Matlock Primitive Methodist Prize Choir
^[3] Sydney Lill and his brother in law James Elston Slater (Edith's husband) are named on Matlock's War Memorial on Pic Tor
^[4] Rev James Burton is listed as Minister in Kelly's 1908 Directory