Harvey Baptist Church

In 1946 the York County Baptist Association made a motion to start a Baptist church for the Harvey area. However, this idea did not take root until 1977 when Alice and Ray Boone moved to Harvey. They came from Toronto to begin working for the Shantymen's Christian Association when they received a call from Rev. Frank Innis, pastor of the Millville Baptist Church, regarding the idea of a Baptist Church in Harvey. They agreed; however, there were a few issues: they had no land, people, buildings, or money to start up a church. Bit by bit the church came together. In 1979 the York County Baptist Association provided a grant and Wallace Coburn offered a piece of land. A couple of months later Skyline Acres United Baptist Church offered the church a portable building they were no longer using. On July 9th, 1979, the building was set up, and on September 16th the church was officially open.

This church is a fine example of a Baptist meeting house, a common style among Baptists in early to mid-nineteenth century Atlantic Canada. This style is often characterized by its small and rather plain facility, with no steeple, and gothic embellishments. The front entrance was often on the gable end, with either two entrances, one on the left and right sides of the front façade, one meant for the men and the other for women; or a centrally placed doorway. In this case there is one doorway, giving a hint to the type of mindset the original congregation had. This church is unusual in the way that there is so much detail packed into a small space. This building has Gothic Revival architecture in the meeting house style building. One of the key features that makes this visible are the Gothic Revival windows set on all sides of the structure. One of the most eye-catching features on the front façade is the small, open cage, saddleback steeple, containing a quite impressive-sized bell. This feature is unusual because often Meeting Houses do not have bells, and when they do, they are usually situated on the peak on the main structure.

The interior features a pulpit that is positioned on an indented, centrally placed on the back wall, and gothic revival windows containing stained glass on all sides of the sanctuary. The front façade features a small medallion window near the peak on the gable end. The building appears to have had multiple additions built on over the years, especially one the same height of the structure on the right side and where the pulpit is situated.

This congregation has since closed (2020), and the building is now owned by Hunter House Bath and Body.

Information provided by The Village of Harvey Station website.