Bethel was a branch of Calfaria, Aberdare and began as a Sunday School in 1846, overseen by the Rev.

[1] The church itself was established in 1857, largely at the instigation of Thomas Price, minister of Calfaria, Aberdare, and the leading figure in the Baptist denomination in the locality.

[4] Price, however, ensured that the unity of the Baptist 'family' of churches was maintained by such activities as Baptismal services in the river Cynon and annual eisteddfodau.

In 1913, a local resident recalled: "I remember that once a month on Sunday afternoons, Dr. Price, the Baptist minister, used to baptise his recent converts in the Cynon River, alongside the iron bridge at the bottom of Commercial Street.

"[5]Price is recorded as having conducted many baptismal services in the river Cynon, both alongside the iron bridge as described above or in a pool above the original schoolroom which had been provided for the purpose by Richard Fothergill, owner of the ironworks.

During Jones's brief ministry, Bethel became the focus of educational activity with the minister delivering a series of lectures on Geology.

He was previously a minister at Treuddyn and Leeswood in Flintshire and was inaugurated at services at Bethel on 23 January.

[1] In December 1862, Bethel held a week-long series of services to celebrate half a century since the opening of the chapel building.