KAWARTHA LAKES-As European immigrants moved to the forests south-central Ontario in the nineteenth century, churches were typically among the first institutions. As the first churches opened, many of these settlements had neither a chapel nor a minister and had to make do with what they had. Some were served by travelling preachers, others employed lay readers, which were typically an educated local resident. Until a chapel could be constructed—which might take several years—private homes, schools and other community buildings often served as a makeshift church. The Rettie Family were the first settlers of the community that would later become known as Burnt River (then Rettie’s Bridge) in the 1860s.
The community’s first church services were held in the log schoolhouse on Lot 13, Concession 5 of Somerville, under the auspices of the Methodist Church, with Rev. Tapscott, the Baptist Minister from Fenelon Falls conducting the services. In 1888, Nancy McIntyre donated land to construct the Methodist Church on the main street. If anyone had wanted to attend an Anglican Church, the nearest chapel was St. Peter’s Bury’s Green, which would have taken about an hour and half or two hours by horse and wagon/buggy/sleigh.
Robert Maconachie was a British civil servant, who had worked for many years in India. When he retired, he decided to move to Canada with his wife and three children to become a gentleman farmer—for generations owning farmland had been associated with social standing in Britain. Robert purchased 675 acres of what was said to be farmland in Somerville Township from an English land agency, sight unseen. He commissioned a red brick manor house and gatehouse to be completed before he arrived in 1895.
While he lived in England, Robert was a lay reader in the Church of England, and it was very important to him to have an Anglican Church in his new community. Beginning in 1896, he organized divine services in the Orange Hall (which was immediately beside the Methodist Church), while hosting Sunday School and some community events in his manor home. Children remembered visiting the Maconachie home to see their first Christmas tree, which featured lit candles—as was fashionable in that era. Children would receive an orange or a small book as a Christmas present—which would have been very special in Burnt River in the Victorian era. That year, he received his formal qualifications to serve as a lay reader in Canada, and was supervised by the Anglican minister at Fenelon Falls and Bury’s Green, the Reverend William Farncomb.
Becoming a gentleman farmer in the woods north of Burnt River did not turn out as well as Robert had hoped and he returned to England, but his three sons remained in Canada. They followed in his footsteps: One became a civil servant, the other two attended the agricultural college at Guelph. Trained in agriculture, Rowland, also became a lay reader, taking over his father’s position in 1899. He would later go back to school and become an Anglican minister, and would preach at Lindsay. The manor house burned, and the bricks were salvaged to build a house near Fenelon Falls (later occupied by Barry Jenkins). The gatehouse was moved to become a cottage on Four Mile Lake. In 1929, the estate became part of the Victoria County Forest—the Somerville Tract or Pinery.
Before Ronald left for England, he began the process of building a chapel which Rowland would continue. In that era, most rural churches were frame buildings with wood siding. Some churches were made of brick. But Burnt River’s Anglican Church would be like the old churches of England, with solid stone walls. Parishioner Sam Suddaby owned the stone quarry on the railway south of the village and William Shuttleworth was a stonemason. Joseph Handley Sr. was the community’s sawmiller. When these four men worked together, great things were possible. Sam Suddaby designed the 37×25 foot building, with a 10×18 entry hall and vestry. The building would cost more than $750, which was a considerable sum in that era. John Hodgson donated the land.
A bee was arranged, and within a few days, the limestone was cut at Suddaby’s quarry and drawn to the site using horse and wagon. The committee hired Richard Carr, a master stonemason from Irondale to build the chapel. This skilled tradesman took the time to cut and shape the limestone blocks before laying them. It has been said that he was doing a better job than the congregation could afford, so the work was finished by a local tradesman, likely William Shuttleworth. The difference between the two masons’ work is apparent when looking at the building—the stones near the top and on the back of the church are rougher, and not as uniformly cut. But this distinction is part of what makes the church special. Constructed in 1903, it was officially opened in May 1904.
St. Luke’s Anglican Church was a cozy little stone church, heated with a wood stove and lit with coal oil lamps. Heating the church, filling and cleaning the lamps was laborious. In the 1920s, gasoline lights were hung from the ceiling, which could be filled at Wright’s Service Station. Electric lights were introduced in 1936.
When St. Luke’s Anglican Church opened, families would either walk or bring their horses to church. A driving shed was needed to accommodate the equines, which was completed by 1920. The second story was a parish hall, finished with hardwood panelling, that included a stage and a rudimentary kitchen. Along with the Orange Lodge, this parish hall hosted Sunday School and many community events, including events hosted by the United (formerly Methodist Church)—social events, card parties, wedding showers, meetings of community groups, and quilting bees. Ladies endured the heat as they cooked many meals on the woodstove. In 1935, it briefly hosted Continuation Classes (Grades 9 and 10) until the addition was completed at the Public School.
In 1955, once practically every family had an automobile, the first storey of the driving shed was converted into a larger community hall, with a more modern kitchen and seating for 75. At that time, the old air circulating wood stove from the church moved to the hall, as the chapel upgraded to oil heat. After the Burnt River Somerville Community Centre opened in 1983, many activities moved to the new facility, and the old church hall fell into disrepair. In 2001, it was disassembled and moved to Buckhorn, where it became a healing lodge and respite centre.
Originally, St. Luke’s Anglican Church was built in a traditional English Style, with parishioners entering at the front of the church, on the south side. In 1967, it was redesigned with entry at the back of the church, which created a centre aisle—it was said a young bride would not be married there without a centre aisle to walk down. The new entrance was made of limestone to match the original building.
Until 2007, the church did not have indoor washrooms—relying on an outhouse behind the building. To add washrooms, Peter Rea designed another addition—he would also do the carpentry work. As the old wall was being taken down, his brother Ernie saved the stones and relaid them on the road side. Because stone was no longer produced at the local quarry, Erick Watson ordered the closest matching commercially sold stone that he find, which was produced in Quebec. The design incorporated a cross, made from smoother stone, with the date engraved by Lindsay Monuments.
Many volunteers were needed to maintain a church in a small community like Burnt River. For generations, families faithfully attended Sunday service, and did their part to keep the organization going. One of the first church groups was the Willing Workers (later Women’s Auxiliary, Ladies Aid, Anglican Church Women), who hosted countless events, preparing many meals over the years. In the 1930s, the church asked each member to set one hen, raise the chicks, then donate them for a Thanksgiving Fowl Supper. The event was well advertised, and was an important fundraiser. In 1938 tickets were 40 cents for adults and 20 cents for children. The Women’s Auxiliary also hosted an annual Garden Party, where visitors could be told their fortune by reading tea leaves and churn ice cream. Many parishioners looked forward to seeing the children sing and dance at the May Pole for the church’s anniversary in May. For more than 50 years, Ada Handley taught Sunday School, and organized many youth activities, including Sunday School Picnics to Four Mile Lake.
When Robert Maconachie commissioned an ill-fated estate in the woods north of Burnt River, few would have realized how this venture would ultimately shape the community. It just happened that this lay reader was moving to a village, whose largest employer was a stone quarry that had the materials to build a beautiful little stone church, like so many found across the English countryside. Though his stay in Canada was short, the community took up his cause and built a unique chapel that would become a huge part of social life in the close-knit village of Burnt River.
This story is part of our partnership with Maryboro Lodge, The Fenelon Falls Museum and was written by Glenn Walker.
If you want to make a donation to the museum, you can e-transfer to: [email protected] or mail a cheque to :
Maryboro Lodge Museum
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