Lost Ottawa
Before there was the present staircase from Sussex to Mackenzie at the end of George street in downtown Ottawa, and before there was a Daly Building to the left, and a Connaught (CRA) building to the right, and before there was the Daly Annex, as seen in our last post …
There was St. John’s Anglican Church, favoured as a place of worship by various Governors General.
I haven’t got a start date for the building (which goes back to at least 1875), but I have an end date. It seems to have burned down on January 12, 1912.
(LAC PA-009002)
The history page of St. John the Evangelist Anglican gives the year of construction as 1861. It was built to be a “chapel of ease” – a secondary place of worship (something less than a church) for Lowertown Anglicans who found Christ Church in Uppertown too far to go. The Anglican Chapel of Ease is listed in the 1863 Ottawa Citizen city directory. It was also referred to as “the Bishop’s Chapel.” In the 1870s, it became St. John’s Church.
In his 1871 book “Ottawa Past and Present”, Charles Roger wrote:
“The Bishop’s Chapel on the corner of Sussex and Rideau streets, as it were, was built originally for a School House, but has ever since its erection been used as a Chapel of Ease. This year, His Lordship the Bishop of Ontario having decided upon residing permanently in Ottawa, a wing was added, and the name was changed to that which it now bears. It is really a very pleasing edifice in the gothic style of architecture, but it would be very much improved were it surmounted by a spire about the centre of the building, rising from the ground.”
From the Archivist of the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa: ” It was built as a schoolroom and chapel of ease for Lower Town by Christ’s Church, Ottawa in 1860, and was also known as the Bishop’s Chapel, before eventually becoming Saint John’s Church.”
The vestry records (at Anglican archives housed in Anglican Cathedral bldg) have records of meetings. My 3x great uncle, George Storey, (1812-1888)a general merchant on William, and then Clarence streets sold and gave items to the church. He was an active member at meetings. Interesting to see this photo!
This was originally built as the “Bishop’s Chapel” or “Chapel of Ease” for Christ Church at the west end of Sparks Street. It included a church school in the basement facing Sussex and was also used by British troops stationed in the former Clarendon Hotel across the street, when the capital moved to Ottawa in 1865. There were also plans to build a large Anglican cathedral on this lot, facing Rideau Street, but Christ Church was expanded instead.
The Fire=
The Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada • Fri, 12 Jan 1912Page 1
The Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada • Fri, 12 Jan 1912Page 1
The Ottawa Journal
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada • Tue, 3 Jun 1913Page 1
Lost Ottawa
Sunday Go to Meeting: St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church on Sussex Across from George Street, ca. 1870, looking north east.
This church has a long history going back to its construction 1861, followed by expansion, the inevitable fire, and its eventual relocation to the corner of Somerset and Elgin. The Connaught (CRA) Building now stands just north of the spot. The stairs between Sussex and MacKenzie mark the location of the old church, if I understand things right.
On the northeast corner of George is the former British Hotel, which was a barracks at the time of this picture. Note, the front on Sussex has more floors than the extension along George. The front was rebuilt to its current look circa 1880. (LAC C-000491)
Lost Ottawa
The site of Otawa’s Union Station in January of 1896. You get the industrial flavor of the area had, barely a stone’s throw from Parliament.
To the left of Howe’s store and factory is St. John’s Church, which used to stand at the end of George Street, between Mackenzie and Sussex.
(LAC PA-027736)
Black Sock Church — Herriott and Bridge Street –Photos Larry Clark
1906 INDUSTRIAL AND PICTURESQUE OTTAWA CANADA – PHOTOS— Simpson Book Collection
Another One Bites the Dust –In Memory of the Holiness Movement Church Building (Hornerites)
lindaseccaspina 