Gallery

The gallery is the raised area in a Friends meeting house, usually along the north wall. This area is sometimes called the "facing benches." Historically, the gallery provided seating for ministers, elders, overseers, and the clerk.

An alternate use of the term gallery was for the loft. This area was also sometimes called the "youth's gallery." Architecturally speaking, the word gallery has two meanings. In medieval times, an upper floor in cathedrals was the location for displaying paintings and other pieces of artwork donated by patrons. During the Reformation, the "reformed" groups (Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Friends, Baptists) called the upper level the "loft" in order to distance themselves from the Catholic terminology, while the "Protestant" groups (Anglicans, Huguenots, Lutherans) retained the use of "gallery" for the upper floor seating area.

In the earliest English Baptist and Friends meeting houses, a raised area was located along one wall, where the public members would sit. English Baptists located a single bench here called the "messenger's bench," where potential speakers would sit.

Galleries 1660-1740

The earliest indication of a Quaker gallery was in the meeting house in Bristol, England. There, a raised area was installed for Friends called to speak. Someone with a leading would walk to a point near the raised area for a final check on the leading, then climb the stairs and speak from the raised area.

In the years prior to Toleration, some important changes took place. A short bench was installed atop English galleries, where those who were the most likely to speak would remain through the entire worship. These early galleries are quite elevated compared to later galleries. They usually have an upper bench behind a railing and a lower bench located on floor level in front of the raised area. The early galleries were usually quite short in comparison to those of the following century.

Galleries 1740-1860

Two major changes took place in galleries in the mid-18th century. Both changes were associated with the emergence of the Quaker Plan of religious architecture in America, though after that time Cottage Plan Friends meeting houses also followed the pattern.

The first change was that the gallery was built along an entire long wall of the interior. As a result, it was common for one-third of those gathered to be seated in the gallery (rather than a select few as in the earlier English examples). One of the earliest identified examples of these wall-to-wall galleries is at Caln in Chester County, Pennsylvania. Both at Caln and in the majority of succeeding wall-to-wall galleries, there are three rows of benches, with the back two rows elevated. The general idea was that as Friends grew in their ability to listen to and obey the Light of Christ in their lives, they would gradually find their callings and would be directed to sit on the facing benches. In a sense the gallery represented the continued callings of the Lord in the lives of Friends.

The second change involved an innovation of partition installation. In Friends meeting houses of the 1670-1730 era, the women Friends would often sit on the lower bench in the gallery so they could depart easily for their separate business meetings. Beginning with the Springfield MH in 1738, the partition was installed perpendicular to the gallery and divided it into separate men's and women's spaces. From this time, men and women sat separately for both worship and business.

During this time, the term "the head of the meeting" emerged. Meetings appointed committees on a regular basis for the purpose of assigning seats in the gallery. This was particularly needed for larger business meetings such as QMs and YMs. The seat on the back bench next to the partition was the "head of the meeting," where the most valued Friend sat.

The predominance of the Quaker Plan lasted into the second half of the 19th century. From that time, the three general branches of Friends began to use the gallery in different ways. New Wilburite meeting houses continued the earlier traditions of galleries, so no separate entry for them will follow here.

Galleries among the Hicksites/Liberal Friends 1860-2000

The first branch to make a change was the Hicksites. In the middle of the 19th century, Progressive Friends cleared the gallery of benches and instead had an empty stage there. Speakers on social topics would sit on the stage and deliver orations. Because Progressive Friends rejected any special callings of individuals, they did not provide designated seating for members. In the following years, galleries in new Hicksite meeting houses returned to the pre-1740 plan, with a much shorter gallery along one wall, usually with flanking doors leading into back rooms.

In the 20th century, the rise of modern religious thought had a major impact upon the gallery among Hicksite/FGC Friends.

Perhaps the earliest step in re-organizing the interiors of liberal meeting houses came in the new Chestnut Hill MH in Philadelphia. There, the new MH did not have a gallery at all. The benches were arranged in an open U-shape facing inward towards a fireplace. This statement, architecturally erasing the recognition of spiritual gifts, was followed in succeeding new meeting house construction. Generally, new meeting houses organized the benches in what is described as the "empty square" or the "hollow square." This manner places benches in concentric squares, with no benches identified as a facing bench.

In the late 20th century, some liberal meetings began to call the gallery the "elder's stand" as a means of re-interpreting their historic purpose.

Galleries among the Gurneyite/Programmed Friends 1860-2000

The most drastic late 19th century changes to galleries occurred among the Gurneyites. By the 1870s, the gallery was cleared of all people except the one person chosen to give the message and perhaps one or two others. Certain benches in the gallery were set aside as "mourner's benches," where those touched by the speaking would sit for special attention at the end of the worship. Gurneyites also began to reduce the size of galleries, due to their decreasing use of the space.

In the early 20th century, the remaining galleries among Gurneyites became partially the location of a group of singers, which they called the "choir." However, as the century progressed, galleries were mostly torn out to facilitate the re-orientation of the interior. New Gurney MHs did not include galleries, but instead were likely to install a stage with two or three seats behind the pulpit; the "choir" sat behind these seats. The Friends who sat with the pastor in the chairs in front of the choir are called the "facing Elders," though they appear to serve no official purpose.