Canso United Baptist Church
Title
Canso United Baptist Church
Creator
Avery Jackson
Source
Information provided by the Canso United Baptist Church, and Atlantic Baptist Archives.
Church Name
Canso United Baptist Church
Church Association
Northeast Nova Association
Province
Nova Scotia
County
Guysborough County
Address
1237 Union St, Canso, NS
Status
Active
Date
Originally built circa 1846, current building 1888
Historical Information
Prior to the construction of a Baptist church solely for the use of a Baptist congregation, a Congregational Meeting House was built in 1824.The Canso Baptist Church was organized in 1846. The building used immediately after their organization was built circa 1846 and was rather small, and they soon outgrew this facility. It is likely that these buildings, both the Congregational Meeting House and the first Baptist church, were constructed in the Meeting House style, which was typical of Baptist and Congregational congregations around this time frame in Atlantic Canada, due to its simplistic and rather quick-to-build design. The Meeting House style is characterized by a 1 ½ storey wood-frame construction, with either one or two entranceways located on the gable end. After the congregation ceased to use this building for religious services and decided to construct a new church facility, the building built circa 1846 was converted into a public community hall.
In 1888, the current (2023) Baptist church was built at 1237 Union St. Unlike most Baptist churches built in Atlantic Canada during the later part of the nineteenth century that adopted the use of a style of church architecture with a centrally placed tower on the gable end, usually with a three bay front facade, this church adopted a Cruciform architectural plan, or more fittingly the ‘cross-in-square’ plan with all of the sides being equal in length. This design is somewhat uncommon for its time in terms of style among the Baptist churches in Atlantic Canada. This structure has hints of Gothic Revival architectural elements, evident in the original elements of the church, such as tiered Gothic Revival windows, on each of the gable ends. There is symmetry in this design, which is evident at each of the gable ends, initially mirroring each other in size, style, and architectural detail images both on the interior, and exterior. The front facade of the church features two small entrance-ways which flank the main gable. Once inside the church, there is a single aisle leading to the pulpit.
An interesting feature of this facility is that it appears to have a church hall–connected to the back of the main church structure through a small one-storey walkway–which houses a recreational space and kitchen area. It is unknown if this part of the facility was also built in 1888, but its architectural design suggests that it was added in the first part of the twentieth century.
The church has maintained many of its original features both on the interior and exterior of the building, except for the application of vinyl siding, which has covered the original wooden clad boards, and the removal of the three-tiered gothic window, and installation of a new, larger gothic window on the front facade.
This church was once part of the Canso-Half Island Cove-Queensport Field of United Baptist churches, and the Chedabucto Pastoral Charge along with Boylston, Guysborough, and Half Island Cove churches.
Information provided by the Canso United Baptist Church, and Atlantic Baptist Archives.
Images courtesy of the Atlantic Baptist Archives - D1900.039/36 & D1900.039/770
In 1888, the current (2023) Baptist church was built at 1237 Union St. Unlike most Baptist churches built in Atlantic Canada during the later part of the nineteenth century that adopted the use of a style of church architecture with a centrally placed tower on the gable end, usually with a three bay front facade, this church adopted a Cruciform architectural plan, or more fittingly the ‘cross-in-square’ plan with all of the sides being equal in length. This design is somewhat uncommon for its time in terms of style among the Baptist churches in Atlantic Canada. This structure has hints of Gothic Revival architectural elements, evident in the original elements of the church, such as tiered Gothic Revival windows, on each of the gable ends. There is symmetry in this design, which is evident at each of the gable ends, initially mirroring each other in size, style, and architectural detail images both on the interior, and exterior. The front facade of the church features two small entrance-ways which flank the main gable. Once inside the church, there is a single aisle leading to the pulpit.
An interesting feature of this facility is that it appears to have a church hall–connected to the back of the main church structure through a small one-storey walkway–which houses a recreational space and kitchen area. It is unknown if this part of the facility was also built in 1888, but its architectural design suggests that it was added in the first part of the twentieth century.
The church has maintained many of its original features both on the interior and exterior of the building, except for the application of vinyl siding, which has covered the original wooden clad boards, and the removal of the three-tiered gothic window, and installation of a new, larger gothic window on the front facade.
This church was once part of the Canso-Half Island Cove-Queensport Field of United Baptist churches, and the Chedabucto Pastoral Charge along with Boylston, Guysborough, and Half Island Cove churches.
Information provided by the Canso United Baptist Church, and Atlantic Baptist Archives.
Images courtesy of the Atlantic Baptist Archives - D1900.039/36 & D1900.039/770
Files
Collection
Citation
Avery Jackson, “Canso United Baptist Church,” Atlantic Baptist Built Heritage Project , accessed May 1, 2024, https://atlanticbaptistheritage.omeka.net/items/show/449.