proudly presents : On the way home from Upper Canada Village

1. proudly presents: On the way home from Upper Canada Village SWMbO # 1 spotted a couple churches. So what do you do? Written & photographed by:Fergus Ducharme Assisted by: She Who Must be Obeyed²

4. We had just finished a fairly long day at Upper Canada Village and at the Crysler’s Farm Battlefield and were headed home. All of a sudden SWMbO #1 spotted two small churches along the road that appeared to have Heritage Plaques in their front yards. We were in the small settlement of Riverside, Ontario. Well, what do you think happened next? Obviously, we just had to stop so that we could investigate. This, is a short form report of what we found. There is a fascinating story behind these two churches that has occupied so many people since the Lutherans and the Anglicans arrived in the region in the late 1700’s. I could not believe what I was seeing after having walked around both properties. The massive memorial at one of the churches bearing names such as Crysler and Whitney and in the other the name Schwerdtfeger…very, very interesting and well worth the stop. You should note and remember that as in the case of most of the churches we have visited on this trip; these two were all locked up with no sign of intelligent life anywhere which might let us in to have a look around. Therefore, these ‘visits’ are limited to the exteriors of the buildings themselves and their respective church yards. Notwithstanding these slight ‘accrochages’ we found some really interesting things at both these churches…

5. Holy Trinity Anglican Church

10. What follows is the story of these two churches and many of the churches that were destroyed during the building of the St Lawrence Seaway in the late 1950’s. It was written by The Reverend William R. Byers, the Incumbent at the Church of the Holy Trinity in 2002 .

12. A Brief History of Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Riverside Heights The American Revolutionary War came to its conclusion on October 19, 1781. The Treaty of Versailles was signed permitting the rebel colonists to negotiate peace with England and the Act of Separation was signed. In February, 1782, the Act of Evacuation was proclaimed by the United States Congress. It required all Crown Loyalists who refused to take the American Oath to leave the country, forfeiting all their material possessions and properties. A convoy of disbanded Loyalist soldiers and families, under the command of Brigadier-General, Sir John Johnson, left Montreal on July 10, 1784 for New Johnstown (Cornwall) and Kingston. Others followed spreading out along the front. In November 1784, the first Loyalists, about 440 in number arrived at Riverside. Imagine, if you will, what that must have been like. Soon after, this group of United Empire Loyalists, who were settled in the townships of Williamsburg, Matilda and Osnabruck, began a community effort to build a Church at Riverside or East Williamsburg as the area was known for some time. Lack of funds and the inability to obtain an ordained pastor seems to have hampered the effort. Many of these settlers were of German descent, Palatinate refugees, who had been displaced earlier from their homes in Germany and had been forced to travel to England before moving on to America.

13. Naturally, these settlers wanted a Lutheran pastor who could speak German. They petitioned the Governor of Quebec for permission to build a church on the centre Commons in Williamsburg Township. Secondary sources list various dates ranging from 1788 to 1793 as to when this frame church was built. It was known originally as Zion Church. This Church was built by Colonel Henry Merkley, Master Builder. James Croil in his “Dundas : or, A Sketch of Canadian History” (1861) states that the Lutherans of Williamsburg, in the year 1789 commenced to build a frame church 60 feet by 40 feet in size, on the centre commons. This church, Croil goes on to say, was located on the very site of the edifice occupied by the present (1861) Church of England. Hazel Mae Schwerdtfeger in her book, “Memoirs of Reverend J. Samuel Schwerdtfeger” (1961) describes the first church as follows : “Built in the Dutch style, the church went neither to the extreme of plainness nor to that of fancy design. The windows and doorways were arched, and the massive beams were of white oak. The walls were bare of any paint or varnish, and there were no stained glass windows or cushioned seats with curved backs. The pulpit was high, with a sounding board over it.” The winter, setting in earlier than usual, did not allow the frame to be raised that season. In spring, it was commenced anew and the work went on rapidly.

14. This was probably the earliest Protestant church built in the colony, and the first purpose-built house of worship in the present Diocese of Ottawa, but it was built primarily by Lutherans. Lutheran pastors serving this congregation included: The Rev. Johann Samuel Schwerdtfeger 1791-1803 The Rev. Frederick Augustus Meyers 1804-1807 The Rev. Johann Gunter Weigandt1807-1835. According to a brief history compiled by the late George F. Jowett, The Rev. Johann Samuel Schwerdtfeger was an eminent Lutheran Pastor. He was born in Bavaria, educated in Germany, and served in the United States. As a Loyalist he had endured imprisonment for declaring his satisfaction with British rule. He was a pacifist and although he had not served in the Loyalist forces, his loyalty to the Crown was well-known and he was granted United Empire Loyalist status. In the fall of 1791, Jowett records, he arrived with his wife and eight children by covered wagon. During those early years, it appears that the first church was built as a co-operative, community effort with a congregation of Anglicans, German Calvinists (later Presbyterians) and German Lutherans worshipping together under the leadership of The Rev. Samuel Schwerdtfeger, a Lutheran pastor. The first worship service in the new church occurred on September 17, 1792.

18. Services were in both English and German. In 1793, the Lutheran congregation applied to the government of Upper Canada for a charter but instead, got only a “leave of occupation.” Rev. Schwerdtfeger was a brilliant man, highly educated in his native Germany. He served a short term in the Lutheran Church in London, England. There he became familiar with modifications in the Lutheran service as it had been influenced by the Anglican Book of Common Prayer. This modified service was used with the Halle hymnal. He emigrated to Lancaster, Pennsylvania where he encountered strife between the various Lutheran congregations. He was successful in bringing peace amongst the various parties. While serving in Lancaster, he met a young man who was destined to be a powerful influence in Upper Canada and the Anglican Bishop’s first Commissary. This man was Charles James Stuart, a teacher who would later become The Rev. Charles James Stuart, DD. Their friendship was deep and lasting and later when Stuart was serving in Kingston, Schwerdtfeger would be at Riverside. Stuart was the first Anglican clergyman serving in this area. He was officially appointed by the Crown to serve Upper Canada. He served the garrison at Kingston and was Chaplain Royal to the King’s Royal New York Regiment.

19. The Reverend Johann William Schwerdtfeger

20. Known as the “Padre on Horseback”, he served the Anglican settlers from Kingston to Cornwall. It appears that the residents of the three denominations at Riverside worshipped together until each group was able to have its own church and clergyman. The first break came in 1795 when the Calvinists received a grant of 70 acres of land from the Crown in North Williamsburg. Under the leadership of The Rev. Ludwig Broeffle, they built the first Presbyterian Church in Dundas. Rev. Schwerdtfeger died in 1803 and was succeeded by Frederick Augustus Meyers, a Lutheran student minister, and the son of a Lutheran Pastor from the Bay of Quinte area. Meyers left in 1807 to go to Lancaster, Pennsylvania to complete his education. In 1814, Meyers came back to this area as a Lutheran Pastor and served the congregation he had begun in Matilda township while there as a student minister. In 1827, he was ordained as an Anglican priest and became the first Anglican priest to serve the Anglican Parish of St. John the Baptist in Matilda (now situated in Iroquois). He remained there until his death in 1832. In 1808, the Rev. J.G. Weigandt (whose name came to be spelled Weagant), the son-in-law of The Rev. .].C. Schwerdtfeger, accepted a call from the Lutheran congregations of Williamsburg and Osnabruck, and arrived at Riverside. He had previously served the small Lutheran flock along the Bay of Quinte and was well acquainted with The Rev. Charles James Stuart and the Meyers family.

21. The development of Lutheran churches in North Williamsburg and Osnabruck depleted the Lutheran membership at Riverside (East Williamsburg). Finances were difficult for everyone in those days. The clergy often did not receive the promised subscriptions from their parishioners who were often very poor as well. The Anglican clergy in the colonies were better off than their confreres in other churches because of the assistance given to them by The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel located in England. This period of great political unrest made life difficult for the struggling young communities in this region. Upon arrival in Williamsburg in 1808, Rev. Weagant found that the Commons in the front of the centre of the township was divided lengthwise with the west side used by the Presbyterians and the east side belonging to the Lutherans. The land was then (with the consent, apparently of all concerned) divided crosswise into “camps” or blocks and some was left undeveloped. These blocks were divided between the Lutherans and Presbyterians. Weagant records that at that time it was decided by all that should one of them not have a resident minister, then the entire Commons would be for the use of the residing clergyman. This happened after the Presbyterian minister, Rev. Mr. Broeffle died and his widow remarried and moved to another place. Thus, the Commons came entirely under “Lutheran occupation” and was used for the benefit of the congregation and their minister.

22. In early 1811, Weagant complained to his congregation that he could not subsist on the meagre stipend they could provide and that he would have to leave and go elsewhere to make enough to support his family. They indicated that they did not want him to do that and wanted to try to force those in arrears to meet their subscriptions. Weagant did not support such pressure tactics. Having previously consulted with the Churchwardens, the next Sunday he stated that as he was a Hanoverian, a King’s subject born, having received his education in the royal University of Gottingen in the Kingdom of Hanover and as they had been in the habit of having their children (who could not read German and did not understand sufficiently the German language) instructed in the Church Catechism by their former ministers (Schwerdtfeger and Myers), he would make application to the Lord Bishop of Quebec that he should be received as a Minister of the Church of England. This, Weagant records, the congregation unanimously accepted. Weagant then wrote to the Bishop, who, in turn, agreed and asked that the congregation forward to him a letter indicating its support. The congregation was informed publicly in church of the Bishop’s response. The congregation eagerly responded to the Bishop, according to Weagant, especially since it would relieve them of the responsibility of raising much of his stipend.

23. A letter to the Bishop was drawn up and signed by seven leading members of the congregations of Williamsburg and Osnabruck. With this letter in hand, Weagant went to Quebec and was ordained a Deacon by Bishop Jacob Mountain on October 18, 1812. He was ordained a Priest on February 24, 1814. On November 11, 1811 Bishop Mountain signed the document receiving the congregation and their pastor into the Anglican Communion. The name of the church was changed to St. George’s Anglican Church. Weagant seems to suggest that the Church had been called St. George’s Lutheran Church previously.) Naturally, not all the Lutherans were happy with this change. However, Weagant said that the congregations strongly supported the move and that only one person objected. Those chosen to be Vestrymen were John Crysler, Esq.; Henry Merkle, Esq.; Jacob Weegar, Esq., Captain H. Merkle, Lieutenant J. Merkle, Christian Hanes, Andrew Snider, Samuel Schwerdtfeger and Rev. J.G. Weagant. It was also agreed that the Book of Common Prayer and the Holy Bible would be the only books used in the church. During the Battle of Crysler’s Farm in the War of 1812, the church was used as a hospital to shelter wounded men, and hence became known as the “Battle Abbey of Upper Canada.” The New Brunswick Regiment, the 104th, famous for their “dash” through deep winter snow from New Brunswick to aid Sir Isaac Brock’s army at Niagara, arrived in time to participate in the battle of Crysler’s Farm, and was bivouacked in and about the Church.

24. A sometimes bitter dispute over the ownership of the church building continued from 1811 until 1833 between those who were now Anglicans and those who remained Lutherans. Weagant maintained that the glebe with its buildings became now the property of the Church of England. In 1814, the Lutherans invited Rev. Meyers to return. At first, Weagant refused to allow the Lutherans permission to use the Church for worship but eventually, a compromise was reached and they were allowed to use it every second Sunday when there were no Anglican services. In 1821, Meyers also became an Anglican and brought the congregation in Matilda with him into the Anglican Communion. Over time, some of those who originally supported Weagant’s move to Anglicanism became disillusioned and an “opposition party” came into being. After being without a pastor for several years, the Lutherans called the Rev. Herman Hayunga to be their pastor. To say that Weagant and Hayunga developed an antipathy for each other is somewhat of an understatement from the sample of correspondence available for modern perusal. In his letters, Rev. Weagant referred to the fact that the Book of Common Prayer had been used when services were held in English by both of his Lutheran predecessors, Rev. Schwerdtfeger and Rev. Meyers. He continued to insist that all English services held at the church use the Book of Common Prayer and became incensed when Rev. Hayunga would not use the Book of Common Prayer. Hayunga and his supporters, on the other hand, became adamant that the Church and its property belonged to the Lutherans and should be returned to them.

25. By 1826 accusations and counter-accusations, petitions and counter-petitions were flying back and forth between the local parties, the Anglican Bishop and the Government of Upper Canada over which group rightfully owned the glebe property, the church and the parsonage. It was not the first time that the title to the glebe property came into question. For a time there was a struggle between the Anglicans and the Presbyterians of Osnabruck, a tension which harkened back to the days when the Lutherans and Presbyterians shared the glebe until the death of Rev. Broeffle. In fact, no one had clear title to the property as no land grant had ever been ceded. In 1827 both the Anglicans and Lutherans petitioned The Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, Sir Peregrine Maitland, for a solution to the impasse. Neither these documents nor the resolution have been found but correspondence indicates that the two groups were instructed to find a way to share the property equitably and amicably. The Anglicans offered to the Lutherans to either buy or sell all the rights to the property either party might have for the sum of 200 pounds. The Lutherans rejected the offer maintaining their right to the entire property. As the rhetoric escalated the Bishop obviously felt that something else had to be done. First, an Assistant Curate was sent to assist Rev. Weagant as he was now ageing and in failing health.

26. In 1830, The Rev. Frederick Mack arrived to help with the work in Osnabruck and Williamsburg. How long he remained is uncertain. In 1832, the Bishop sent another Assistant Curate, The Rev. John GerbrandBeek Lindsay. A petition from the Protestant Episcopal Congregation (Anglican) of the Township of Williamsburg to Sir John Colborne, Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, was responded to on October 20, 1832. The Legislative Council felt that the compromise offered by the Anglicans but rejected by the Lutherans in 1828 was equitable. The judgement required the glebe to be divided in two with the Anglicans keeping the part with the church, parsonage and buildings for their sole use and benefit. The Lutherans were to have an equal share of the land. The rationale for the decision was the observation that a “great majority of the congregation voluntarily applied to the late Bishop of Quebec to be received with their clergyman into the bosom of the Church of England.” By March 1833, the Churchwardens were agreeing with the Bishop that it was time for the ailing Rev. Weagant to step down in favour of Rev. Lindsay. It seemed the only way to reconcile with the Lutherans. In 1833, the Church of England obtained legal title to the church and its surrounding glebe property which the Anglicans had held since 1811. Weagantwas reputed by some to be “a strong, forceful character, well suited to deal with the troublesome affairs of the time.” The Rev. John Gerbrand Beck Lindsay succeeded Rev. Weagant in 1835. He was said to have been endowed with quiet, firm strength, great patience and forbearance

27. He was “oil” on the “troubled waters”. He and Rev. Hayunga even liked each other. A letter from Rev. Hayunga to Rev. Lindsay confirms that The Bishop and Rev. Lindsay graciously offered the Lutherans the use of the Church for worship but Rev. Hayunga politely declined saying “it is very inconvenient for them to avail themselves of the episcopal permission to make use of the Church.” Immediately thereafter, Lindsay undertook the dismantling of the now dilapidated church building and its rebuilding in a different style. Nearly all the timber of the first, being white oak, and sound, was used again in constructing the second. The arched window-frames of the old church were also incorporated into the new church. The second church, named Trinity Anglican Church, rose quite literally out of the ruin of its predecessor. It was a lovely, white, frame building. At the same time Rev. Lindsay, through his energy and devotion to duty, is credited with building a strong Anglican congregation. He moved on to Cornwall in 1844 and died there in 1845, aged 37, while diligently serving a group of recently arrived immigrants who were suffering “the fever”. Shortly after, his four sons were drowned while skating on thin ice on the St. Lawrence River. The Rev. Dr. Edward Jukes Boswell succeeded Lindsay. In 1857, he was responsible for the establishment of the first St. James’ Anglican Church on the site of the present St. James’ Church, in the new village of Morrisburg.

28. Trinity Church now had a daughter! In 1862, Trinity became part of the new Diocese of Ontario and part of the Parish of Morrisburg until 1866 when the name was changed to the Parish of Williamsburg. From 1874-1875 it included a congregation known as the German Mission. The present rectory was built in Morrisburg in 1874 and in 1878 a tower (the present one) was added to Old St. James’. In 1878, during the incumbency of The Rev. Charles Forest, a correspondent for the Dominion Churchman (Nov. 21, 1878) reported that he had visited the Morrisburg area in 1874 and again in 1878 and had noticed a vast improvement in the interior of Trinity Church, Williamsburg, the second oldest Anglican Church in Ontario. “Once it was filled with great square pews, but these have all been swept away, and their place supplied by seats, free and open. The hideous side-galleries have been taken down, but the western one still remains. Although there is no structural chancel, a quasi-sanctuary has been made with good effect. The altar is of good dimensions; the sacred monogram “I.H.S.” is embroidered on the frontal. There is a proper re-table, on the front of which are the words “Holy, Holy, Holy”. A new pulpit, a handsome chandelier, and a stained glass window, testify to the liberality of certain parishioners. The congregation of Trinity Church is to be congratulated in the advance in reverence and decency visible in their “House of Prayer”.

29. A large font placed near the western entrance, and a credence in the chancel are yet required. ” A later Incumbent, The Rev. Clarendon Lamb Worrell (1884-1886) became the sixth Bishop of Nova Scotia and Primate of Canada. A re-alignment of parishes in 1887 left the Parish of Williamsburg consisting of Trinity Church, Riverside, St. George’s, Gallingertown and St. Paul’s, Aultsville. The parishes were re-configured in 1899 at which time Trinity, Riverside again became part of the Parish of Morrisburg. The last Rector to live in the Riverside parsonage was The Rev, Montague Gower Poole (1886-1898). Rev. Poole found the parsonage in a shocking state. From then on, the Rector and his family have always lived in Morrisburg. The next Incumbent, The Rev. George S. Anderson, might well be described as a “builder of churches.” He had begun his ministry in Morrisburg in 1892 and almost immediately assumed the responsibility for overseeing the construction of the second St. James’ Church, salvaging as much stone and slate as possible from the first church. The tower, constructed in 1878 was incorporated into the new St. James’. In 1899, Rev. Anderson became Rector of the newly re-aligned “old Parish of Morrisburg.” Not only had “old St. James’” served its purpose, but so had “old Trinity.” Repairs were badly needed on the wood frame building, the membership was badly diminished due to the prosperous growth of Morrisburg, and finances simply were not available to build a new church or repair the old one.

30. The wealthy Whitney/Crysler family was now located in Ottawa but retained their strong interest in Trinity Church. Edwin Canfield Whitney and his wife Sarah Crysler Whitney were millionaires and generous philanthropists. They welcomed the opportunity to donate a new church to the glory of God and in loving memory of their parents and United Empire Loyalist forbears. Mr. Whitney’s parents were Richard Leet Whitney (1805-1883) and Clarissa Jane Fairman (1809-1891). Mrs. Whitney’s parents were John Pliny Crysler (1801-1881) and Mary Wesley (1812-1864). The stained-glass windows over the Altar in Holy Trinity are memorials to these people. Mr. Benson S. Wickware, master builder, of Morrisburg was engaged to build the new church. Mr. Wickware had recently completed the building of the “new St. James” and other fine buildings in the area. The “new Trinity Church” was built of stone in 1902, using the design of “new St. James”’ in scaled-down form. A further endowment which continues to provide for the on-going support of the Church was given by the Whitney family. The church was consecrated in 1904 at a magnificent ceremony presided over by The Right Reverend John Charles Hamilton, D.D., first Bishop of the recently formed Diocese of Ottawa (1896). Prominent officials including The Governor General, Lord Minto, Members of Parliament, Officials from the U.S.A., and distinguished clergy and laity of the Diocese attended. Mr. Whitney’s brother, Colonel James Pliny Whitney,

31. Sir James Pliny Whitney, Premier of Ontario, 1905 to 1914

32. member of the Provincial Legislature for Dundas and soon to become Premier of Ontario, and members of the Whitney family, were in attendance. Premier Whitney was knighted and became Sir James Pliny Whitney in 1908. When Premier Whitney died in 1914 he was interred in the family plot with its massive Crysler & Whitney monuments. The Province of Ontario erected a magnificent monument to his memory. These monuments are now located in the present churchyard. The new church retained the name Trinity Anglican Church and acquired a new name as well, “Whitney Memorial Church.”

41. We want to thank the following for their contributions to this article: Some materials provided by: http://www.holytrinityanglican.ca/ Other materials and some photos provided by: www.wikipedia.org For more information on the Rev Schwerdtfeger: http://www.flora.org/nancy/sdg/schwerdtfeger/ & http://www.swerdfeger.ca/G0-L0-Rev_Samuel_Schwerdtfeger.html This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

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