Bretherton Congregational Church, originally founded as the Ebenezer Chapel, has served as a central place of nonconformist worship in the village of Bretherton, Lancashire, since the early 19th century.

The Ebenezer Chapel first opened for public worship on June 1st 1819. The Revd William Roby from Manchester preached in the morning, the Revd Alexander Steill from Wigan in afternoon & Revd George Greatbatch in the evening.

On May 23rd, 1820 Reverend William Bowen was officially ordained as a minister at the chapel.

Major interior renovations to the chapel took place in 1833. Workers laid down a wooden floor, erected pews, and constructed both a school room and a tower.

In 1837, William Rymer, a wealthy landowner from London (later Manchester), formally donated the land on which the chapel stood. The original 1819 Ebenezer Chapel was replaced by the grander present-day church building on June 10th, 1896.

Today, the church retains many of the historical features, including a working two-manual organ, stained-glass windows, and an adjoining burial ground.

(Photographed on Friday 12th June 2026)