St. George's (Round) Church (Halifax, Nova Scotia) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St. George's (Round) Church |
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St George's Round Church, view from the Northwest
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| 44°39′12″N 63°34′58″W / 44.6534°N 63.5829°W | |
| Location | Halifax, Nova Scotia |
| Country | Canada |
| Denomination | Anglican Church of Canada |
| Churchmanship | High church |
| Website | Official Website: https://roundchurch.ca/ |
| History | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Founded | 1756 (as the Little Dutch (Deutsch) Church) 1827 (as the Parish of St. George) |
| Dedication | Saint George |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Style | Palladian |
| Groundbreaking | 1800 |
| Completed | 1812 (Original structure) 1827 (Addition of the apsidal chancel and entrance) 2000 (Restoration) |
| Specifications | |
| Materials | Wood |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island |
| Province | Canada |
St. George's Round Church is a special church in Halifax, Canada. It's made of wood and has a unique round shape, following the Palladian style of building. Construction started in 1800 with help from the British royal family.
We don't know who the main architect was. However, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, who was the father of Queen Victoria, helped a lot with the design. The church is located in the North End of Halifax. It became a National Historic Site of Canada in 1983. This was because of its link to Halifax's early history and its special architecture.
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The Little Dutch Church
The people who started the Round Church first met at a much smaller church. This was the Little Dutch (Deutsch) Church, located a few blocks away. German Lutherans who settled in Halifax founded the Little Dutch Church in 1756. These settlers were called "Foreign Protestants" and were among the first people to build Halifax.
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They used a house they got by trading lumber and turned it into a simple, one-room church. Building finished in 1758, and a steeple and bell tower were added in 1760.
The church community was very poor. They really wanted a German Lutheran minister. Services were first held in German by regular church members. Even though the church was overseen by St. Paul's Church, it kept its Lutheran ways.
In 1784, they finally got a German Lutheran minister, Bernard Michael Houseal. Because they were so poor, they couldn't pay him alone. To keep their minister, they had to agree to rules from the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. This meant the church officially became Anglican, but it still kept its Lutheran traditions. About 40 years later, the community grew too big for the Little Dutch Church, and work on the Round Church began.
Prince Edward's Design
In the late 1700s, Halifax was a military town without many beautiful public buildings. Prince Edward was in Halifax from 1794 to 1800. He wanted to change this. He led a building effort that included the Prince’s Lodge, the Martello Tower, the Halifax Citadel Clock Tower, and St. George’s Round Church. All these buildings were inspired by the Palladian style.
_Monument,_St._George%27s_Church,_Halifax,_Nova_Scotia.jpg)
Prince Edward, his older brother Frederick, and their father, George III, all supported the plans for the Round Church. King George III gave a large donation of £200. Prince Edward also asked John Henry Fleiger, William Hughes, and John Merrick to help design a church in north Halifax in 1798-99.
The first church service was held on July 19, 1801, by Rev. George Wright. There is also a plaque inside the church. It remembers three crew members who died in the Invasion of Martinique (1809). St. George's stopped being completely round when a new chancel (the area around the altar) and entrance were added in 1827. The entrance was later changed to be more square. This made it easier to get in, even if it changed the original design a bit.
Early Challenges
The church was expensive to build. The community, which was never rich, struggled to pay for it. Money came from private gifts, donations, and renting out pews (church benches). However, some money depended on St. George’s fully becoming part of the Church of England.
The community agreed to follow Anglican services and have an Anglican priest. But they didn't want to follow the Anglican leadership completely. They worried the Anglican Church would take over St. George’s. They wanted to keep their German rules and have the church's property stay with their elders and wardens, not the diocese (church district).
Bishop Charles Inglis made it hard for the Round Church. He tried to stop people from donating and even suggested building another church nearby to compete with St. George's. In 1811, the community was in great financial trouble. They finally agreed to fully follow the Church of England and the bishop. The only thing the German community refused to give up was the church property itself. To this day, the property belongs to the Rector and Wardens of the church.
Even after these agreements, Bishop Inglis was still not happy. He suggested that St. George’s should not be an Anglican church. Because of this, money promised by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel and the Governor's office was held back. Inglis then refused to help St. George's financially and threatened to close the church.
However, Inglis's harsh actions didn't work. The community didn't give in. They told him they didn't need his money and wouldn't sell their church. Even without a finished inside, they had enough money to fix the roof. They also changed some rules back. For example, members of the Church of England could attend services, but only descendants of German Lutherans could vote.
Inglis's replacement, Bishop Robert Stanser, was willing to find a middle ground. In 1819, St. George’s finally received the money it was promised. In return, it fully adopted Anglican services and its internal structure. Under the leadership of Reverend Robert Fitzgerald Uniacke, St. George’s became its own independent parish in 1827.
Involvement with the Titanic
Halifax was a key city for rescue efforts after the Titanic sank. One rescue ship, the Minia, had its commander, Captain deCarteret, ask his own priest to come along. This priest, Father Henry Ward Cunningham, held memorial services at sea. As a thank you, he received a deck chair from the Titanic. He then gave it to the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic.
St. George's was also involved when the funeral for the Unknown Child (later identified as Sidney Leslie Goodwin) took place there. Sidney Goodwin's grave was later moved to the Fairview Lawn Cemetery. Many other Titanic victims are buried there too.
The Halifax Explosion
St. George's is in the North End neighborhood of Halifax. This area was very close to where the Halifax Explosion happened. Surprisingly, the church didn't get as much damage as expected. This might be because St. Patrick's Catholic Church across the street helped protect it.
Only the windows, doors, and a chimney were badly damaged. The church's organ was destroyed, but it was replaced with a new one from 1912. St. George's was so well protected that its rectory (the priest's house) could shelter 22 people after the blast, even without windows or doors. The church hall had some damage. Overall, St. George's was lucky to survive the explosion mostly intact. However, 25 members of its community, including 7 young children, died in the explosion.
The Fire
On June 2, 1994, a fire started in the church basement. Children had found a way into the Round Church. The fire spread up to the dome, causing it to fall apart. About 30 percent of the building was destroyed.
People worked hard to raise money for repairs. Prince Charles (now King Charles III) gave a donation. He had visited the church in 1983 with Diana, Princess of Wales. Later in 1994, Prince Philip visited St. George's. He was interested because of a fire at Windsor Castle two years earlier. Nova Scotia gave a gift to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip during that visit, and they donated $1,000 to the restoration.
To avoid going into debt, the repairs took six years. Work happened in stages as money became available. The project finished in 2000 and cost $4.6 million, which was actually less than expected.
St. George's YouthNet
St. George's YouthNet is a group that helps young people in the city. It's run by St. George's Church and is based there. YouthNet offers mentoring and teaches life skills.
They have programs for lunch and after school. The organization also runs summer camps for kids of all ages, from toddlers to teens. Some successful projects include the Moving Images Project and a Teen Program. The Teen Program is supported by the Rotary Club and the IWK. It's called "Healthy Teens Building Vibrant Communities." There's also an art program led by local artist Emma Fitzgerald.
See also
- List of oldest buildings in Canada
- List of oldest buildings and structures in Halifax, Nova Scotia
