Houghton
Chapel,
also
known
as
St
Mary's
Centre
and
formerly
Houghton
Chapel
Retreat,
which
stands
opposite
the
Parish
church
of
St
Mary
the
Virgin,
Houghton
and
Wyton,
was
built
in
1840
by
villagers
Potto
Brown
and
Joseph
Goodman
.The
location
should
not
to
be
confused
with
Houghton
Regis,
near
Dunstable
in
Bedfordshire.
The
Chapel
became
part
of
the
United
Reformed
Church
(URC)
and
continued
as
the
village
non-conformist
place
of
worship
until
the
1980s.By
then
membership
had
fallen
to
just
six
and
the
URC
decided
that
it
was
no
longer
viable
as
an
independent
chapel.
The
URC,
under
the
leadership
of
the
Minister
of
the
Free
Church
in
St
Ives,
planned
and
supervised
the
conversion
of
the
chapel
building
into
a
residential
retreat
centre
that
opened
in
1986.
The
Retreat
is
used
by
a
wide
variety
of
groups
including
churches,
guides,
brownies,
other
youth
groups,
and
families.In
addition,
many
organisations
hire
The
Retreat
for
day-time
or
evening
conferences
and
meetings.
The
Retreat
remains
a
consecrated
building
and
there
is
a
regular
pattern
of
services
throughout
the year.
