St. Paul's Church (Halifax)


St. Paul's Church is an evangelical Anglican church in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, within the Diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island of the Anglican Church of Canada. It is located at the south end of the Grand Parade, an open square in downtown Halifax with Halifax City Hall at the northern end.
The church is modelled after Marybone Chapel in Westminster, London, which was designed by controversial architect James Gibbs, the architect of St Martin-in-the-Fields at Trafalgar Square.
Built during Father Le Loutre's War, it is the oldest surviving Protestant church in Canada and the oldest building in Halifax. There is also a crypt below the church. Close to the church is the St. Paul's Church Cemetery. The official chapel of the church was the Little Dutch Church.
Saint Paul's was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1981. In 1981, it was designated a Municipal Registered Heritage Property by the former City of Halifax, and in 1983 it was designated a Provincially Registered Heritage Property both under the provincial Heritage Property Act.

History

St. Paul's Church was founded in 1749. The construction was begun in 1750 and is based on the ground plan of Gibbs' Marybone Chapel in London, with later additions such as a larger tower. The Reverend William Tutty opened the church on September 2, 1750. Rev. William Tutty was the first minister ; followed by Rev. John Breynton and Rev. Thomas Wood, who served at the same time. The church also served as the site for the initial congregation of St. Matthew's United Church until this church was built.
During the French and Indian War, the church was the site of the burials of two prominent Nova Scotians: Governor Charles Lawrence. and Catholic Priest Pierre Maillard, the latter ceremony was attended by a large number of Mi'kmaq people. Soon after the war, Vice-Admiral Philip Durell was buried after having participated in the Siege of Louisbourg and the Siege of Quebec.
During the American Revolution the church held funerals for Francis McLean who defended New Ireland during the war; Capt Henry Francis Evans who died in the Naval Battle off Cape Breton ; Baron Oberst Franz Carl Erdmann von Seitz Hatchment who was the commander of the Hessian soldiers that defended Lunenburg in the Raid on Lunenburg ; and Governor Michael Francklin , whose funeral was also attended by a large number of Mi'kmaq people.
After the American Revolution, with the creation of the Diocese of Nova Scotia in 1787, St. Paul's was given the Bishop's seat, making it the first Anglican cathedral outside of Great Britain. It served as the cathedral from 1787–1864. The diocese included Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, St. Johns, and across Quebec and Ontario to Windsor, and Bermuda. For many decades it was one of the few places of worship in Halifax, and other denominations would thus hold services in the building.
During the Halifax Explosion of 1917, a piece of wooden window frame from another building was lodged into the wall of St. Paul's Church, where it remains today.

Prominent monuments

Men

Women

Silver communion service

The service originally consisted of five pieces: four pieces have the mark of King Georges I. Two of these pieces also have the mark of Queen Anne, which are dated 1713. The fifth piece – the paten – was damaged and melted down around 1819. All the pieces are made from Britannia silver. In 1783, Governor Parr had the service given to St. Paul's.
The silversmith Francis Garthorne marked all of the pieces with a "G" that surrounded a small Roman capital A. Garthorne's work is in the collections of Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Fine Arts and the Royal Collection Trust. He created five of the ten Ceremonial maces in the United Kingdom on display in the Jewel House at the Tower of London.

Sculptures

Some of the monuments in the church showcase sculptures by England's leading sculptors during the nineteenth century. All of whom exhibited their work at the Royal Academy of Arts and have their work in the National Portrait Gallery, the Tate, Museum of Fine Arts, Massachusetts State House, Trafalgar Square, St Pauls Cathedral, Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey.
There are two stone carvings by Samuel Nixon, one of a shipwreck and the other of the Parable of the Good Samaritan. Nixon was commissioned by the City of London to create a statue of King William IV, which Gentleman’s Magazine called "a masterpiece" and an example of "artistic genius."
Another sculpture was created by Sir Francis Leggatt Chantrey. Chantrey's most notable works include the statues of King George IV ; King George III, and George Washington. He also executed four monuments to military heroes for St Pauls Cathedral.
There is also a sculpture by Richard Westmacott III . Westmacoott was the son of Sir Richard Westmacott. Among Westmacott III's most notable works is the pediment of the Royal Exchange ; the monument commemorating Sir John Franklin.
There is a sculpture in St. Paul's Church by John Gibson and a monument by William F. Woodington. Woodington's work includes statues on Westminster Bridge, Nelson’s Column, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and the House of Lords.

Ministers (1749–1824)

The crypt contains the remains of 20 congregants which are listed below. Also indicated below are those that have been commemorated in the church through a plaque, a hatchment or a window.

Founders of Halifax

American Revolution

Other

Uniacke Family

The family of Richard John Uniacke dominates the plaques and monuments in St. Paul's Church.

Almon Family

The memorials to the family of Dr. William James Almon also dominant the church. There were four generations of doctors in the family that had a significant impact on the field of medicine in the province.
The memorials to the family of Henry Hezekiah Cogswell also dominant the church. There are monuments placed to four of his children, three of which died while Henry was alive. His son Rev. William became a celebrated orator and author.

Ritchie Family

The memorials to the family of Hon. John William Ritchie also dominant the church. There are memorial windows placed for a son and five of his daughters. His twelve children donated money for the memorial window on the south side of the church.

Notable events

Marriages

Funerals

Royal visits

St. Paul's Church played a significant role in the Halifax Explosion. Doctors used the church as an emergency hospital, using the two vestries to tend to the wounded, while the bodies of the dead were stacked on top of each other around the walls of the nave. Only one stained glass window was broken in the church; however, most of the other windows were smashed, and there were wide cracks in the roof. It was the only church in the city considered safe enough to conduct a service the following day. All the congregations used the church to conduct funerals.
There remains two artifacts in the church from this disaster: the "Explosion Window", which shattered to form a silhouette of a man's head and shoulders. The congregation concluded that the silhouette is the likeness of Abbe Moreau, who arrived with Cornwallis. There is also a piece of a steel window frame that remains embedded in the wall of the vestibule above the inside doors to the church.