Ann Nutter was born Ann Blagbrough in 1722. On 24 June 1753 she married Abraham Hudson, a tailor. She had a daughter with Abraham named Martha, who went on to marry Thomas Thompson. Martha and Thomas were the parents of John Thompson, Ann’s grandson, who was a Wesleyan Preacher. Abraham died in 1754 less than a year into their marriage. In 1757 aged 35, she became Ann Nutter, when she married Matthew Nutter.
Ann was one of the first members of the Wesleyan Society at Skircoat Green, and it is likely she saw John Wesley preach there. The first major Methodist preacher to come to the area was John Nelson, a contemporary of John Wesley who he often travelled with. When John Nelson came to Skircoat Green in 1741 the original venue was not big enough to accommodate everyone, and so John Nelson preached on top of an upturned washing tub. John Wesley visited Skircoat Green in 1746 at the same place John Nelson preached. Ann was unmarried and in her 20s then, and likely saw both visits.
A selection of books about non conformism available in Central Library and Archives
Ann’s involvement in Wesleyan Methodism in Skircoat Green extends to her playing a part in the expansion of Wesleyan methodism in the wider area, particularly to Halifax. The society at Skircoat Green wanted to extend and have a branch at Halifax, and so they raised money and requested preachers to come to preach. Christopher Hooper was a Wesleyan itinerant preacher and was appointed Lord President of the North by John Wesley himself. In 1749 Christopher Hooper described Skircoat Green as the mother church in this area, for all the work the society – which included Ann – did to spread Methodism.
Researched by Katie Wadsworth
