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England's oldest mosque to get £3 million refurbishment
 The restoration of the Grade II listed Victorian building will begin this month after emergency repairs to the roof were completed at Number 8 Brougham Terrace in Liverpool. Henry William Quilliam, the son of a wealthy watchmaker, opened the mosque on Christmas Day 1889 after converting to Islam two years earlier following a trip to Morocco. He took the name Abdullah Quilliam. But the mosque stopped running in 1908 when he decided to go travelling. Dr Mohammad Akbar Ali set up the Abdullah Quilliam Society in 1997 after discovering 8 Brougham Terrace was the home of the mosque. He said: "It is extremely important especially for the younger generation who are searching for roots in this area. "We can say your roots are here. You have become a Muslim, you have adopted the whole heritage of the Muslim nation and you have something concrete to look to which is Brougham Terrace, the first mosque established by an Englishman on English soil. It is unique in that sense." Galib Khan, the society's chairman, hoped the mosque would be open by July. He said: "This truly is the birthplace of Islam in Britain." When work is completed in 2011 it will include the restored mosque, a new mosque, a courtyard, museum, art gallery, learning centre for inter-faith work, library and cafe. The emergency roof repairs cost around £100,000 and £2.5 million still needs to be raised towards the project. Posted by: ryuge 2009-01-01 |
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