Acadia student tours historic Windsor, N.S., church before it’s demolished for housing

February 15, 2024

0 0 6 minutes read

WINDSOR, N.S. — A former Hants County resident is lamenting he couldn’t save a Windsor landmark from the wrecking ball.

But, Thomas Pierce said, he takes solace in knowing the developer plans to incorporate some of the architecture from the decommissioned Windsor United Baptist Church into the new stacked townhouses that are proposed for the site.

“The former Windsor United Baptist Church is a major piece of town history. It’s a major landmark and it is about to be lost forever,” said Pierce, who is an Acadia University student living in Wolfville.

Pierce received permission to tour the former church site by EcoGreen Homes, the development company that will be creating 18 stacked townhouses at the 411 King St. property.

Pierce recorded video of the interior, which he intends to provide to a museum for historical purposes.

In 2019, due to the cost to renovate and heat the Windsor United Baptist Church, the congregation voted to sell the church property and relocate across town to a more modern facility. The glow from the stained-glass windows that decorated the building often illuminated the pews, even when the building’s lights were turned off. – Carole Morris-Underhill

Damage apparent

From the outside, the 19th-century structure looks weathered but the inside is in much worse shape. The inside has been falling into disrepair for some time.

“For me, it was a very emotionally charged experience,” Pierce said after touring the property.

“I was a lot calmer than I thought I would be,” added Pierce, who attended the church in his youth. “I thought I would have a break down, honestly, and I don’t know why I didn’t because the interior is not looking very good.”

Pierce said once inside the church, it became evident that while some of it might be able to be saved, there was a lot of mold as well as paint and plaster peeling. He noted there was sewage back up in the basement.

While he composed his thoughts after the tour, he said he was thankful to have been allowed to document the interior for posterity’s sake.

Water damage to the ceiling could be seen in 2019 prior to the final service at the Windsor United Baptist Church in Windsor. - Carole Morris-Underhill — Water damage to the ceiling could be seen in 2019 prior to the final service at the Windsor United Baptist Church in Windsor. – Carole Morris-Underhill

“I very much get the impression that they very much do want to salvage as much as they possibly can.”

When West Hants council granted the development agreement to EcoGreen Homes in November, council was informed that the company’s intention is to incorporate the church’s steeple, which is on a separate foundation, as well as salvage and repurpose the stained-glass windows.

Pierce said he’s still concerned about the fate of the organ, as that is still inside the main building.

Thomas Pierce describes the organ at the former Windsor United Baptist Church as a piece of art and hopes it can be saved before the building is demolished. - Carole Morris-Underhill — Thomas Pierce describes the organ at the former Windsor United Baptist Church as a piece of art and hopes it can be saved before the building is demolished. – Carole Morris-Underhill

“It’s a big, beautiful organ. It is a work of art in its own right and it should be actively preserved.”

When Pierce learned in 2019 that the congregation was bidding farewell to the church, which dates back to 1898, for a more modern, energy-efficient building, he spoke out, hoping it would be saved. The congregation sold the property to Michael Jamieson, the owner of an audio and lighting productions company. He saw the site’s potential and wanted to preserve the building as well. However, he died in 2022 before being able to transform the building into a music school.

“My biggest mistake was not coming down harder when it came to trying to preserve that site,” said Pierce. “That is a big regret on my part, that I did not push to make it a historical landmark, that I did not push harder.”

Heritage properties

According to West Hants Regional Municipality’s website, there are 20 properties in the county that have received municipal heritage property status, some of which also have provincial or federal designation.

Of the 20 listed, only a handful are churches or former churches. Three of those are located along King Street in Windsor.

Christ Church Anglican, which held its first service in March 1884, was designed by Worcester, Mass., architect Stephen C. Earle. The church was built by local contractor Joseph Taylor, mainly using locally harvested wood and hardware manufactured by the former Windsor Foundry Company.

EcoGreen Homes plans on repurposing several of the stained-glass windows that are prominently displayed throughout the former Windsor United Baptist Church building. - Carole Morris-Underhill — EcoGreen Homes plans on repurposing several of the stained-glass windows that are prominently displayed throughout the former Windsor United Baptist Church building. – Carole Morris-Underhill

Saint John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church, a Gothic Revival-style church that was erected in 1909 and designed by prominent Maritime architect William Critchlow Harris, also carries a provincial heritage designation.

The West Hants Historical Society Museum operates inside a historic church property that “chronicles the changing fates of the Methodist and Presbyterian congregations as they withstood calamitous fires, first in 1897 and again in 1939,” and that once served as a meeting space for the Independent Order of Oddfellows (I.O.O.F.) for 30 years.

Aside from the main space in which to worship, the Windsor United Baptist Church had multiple rooms and offices – all of which became quite arduous for the congregation to keep heated prior to the site being decommissioned in 2019. - Carole Morris-Underhill — Aside from the main space in which to worship, the Windsor United Baptist Church had multiple rooms and offices – all of which became quite arduous for the congregation to keep heated prior to the site being decommissioned in 2019. – Carole Morris-Underhill

There are two other prominent churches on King Street: Windsor United Church, which features Victorian architecture and was built in 1899 to replace the previous 1856 church that was razed during the Great Windsor Fire, and St. John’s Presbyterian Church of Windsor, which dates back more than 180 years. Neither are listed as having heritage designations.

Pierce said he hopes residents will realize there is value in preserving the past.

“Most towns don’t have cathedral-size churches like we do and the people of Windsor and West Hants should be actively trying harder (to save them) and should have a lot more anxiety than they do about trying to preserve these sites,” he said.

At the final service held at 411 King St. in 2019, Rev. Rob Heffernan, the lead pastor at the Windsor United Baptist Church, told the congregation that while they would be leaving their home for the past 121 years, God would remain with them as they set up at their new location on Payzant Drive. - Carole Morris-Underhill — At the final service held at 411 King St. in 2019, Rev. Rob Heffernan, the lead pastor at the Windsor United Baptist Church, told the congregation that while they would be leaving their home for the past 121 years, God would remain with them as they set up at their new location on Payzant Drive. – Carole Morris-Underhill

Housing issue

While more housing is needed in Nova Scotia, Pierce questioned whether demolishing a church was the best way to incorporate it.

“We are in a hard time right now, but how have we gotten to the point where the best way to build housing in our community is to demolish historic churches and historic landmarks?” he asked.

“Development is good. That said, development boons aren’t going to last forever,” said Pierce.

“Development needs to be done in context of preserving our local heritage because after the development boom is gone, we’re going to have a bunch of sites that are not going to be as big money-makers as they once were and we’re going to lose our history at the same time. We’re going to lose both in the next few years if we are not careful.”

Pierce, who is now Roman Catholic, said people of all faiths need to step up and find a way to preserve the local heritage and find ways to reconnect with the masses.

On Nov. 17, 2019, past and present members of the Windsor United Baptist Church congregation, plus some visitors, gathered at the King Street site as churchgoers prepared to bid adieu to the 19th century place of worship and move to a more modern building. - Carole Morris-Underhill — On Nov. 17, 2019, past and present members of the Windsor United Baptist Church congregation, plus some visitors, gathered at the King Street site as churchgoers prepared to bid adieu to the 19th century place of worship and move to a more modern building. – Carole Morris-Underhill

“Those that say church is the people not the building, that may be the case but massive church buildings do not close unless people leave, unless people stop caring about them,” he said.

“A closure of a church building should be regarded either as a spiritual evil in and of itself or a sign of spiritual decay within the Christian community,” he added, noting he recalls going to church and the pews were overflowing with families.

He said tearing down a church in the heart of town would have been almost unthinkable when he was growing up.

Edward Edelstein, the president of EcoGreen Homes, confirmed in an email to SaltWire that construction — and demolition — is planned to begin in late spring. He noted that they intend to “incorporate some of the stained glass to be backlighted and the existing steeple into the new townhouse facades.”