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Church of Our Lord National Historic Site of Canada

626 Blanshard Street, Victoria, British Columbia, V8W, Canada

Formally Recognized: 1990/06/22

General view of the Church of Our Lord, showing the rose window over the entry porch, 2008.; Parks Canada Agency / Agence Parcs Canada, 2008.
General view
General view of the Church of Our Lord, showing the Gothic arched entrance and vestibule, and the spire-topped belfry, 1991.; Parks Canada Agency / Agence Parcs Canada, 1991.
General view
No Image

Other Name(s)

n/a

Links and documents

Construction Date(s)

1875/01/01

Listed on the Canadian Register: 2009/06/11

Statement of Significance

Description of Historic Place

The Church of Our Lord National Historic Site of Canada is an important architectural landmark located in the heart of Victoria, British Colombia. The building’s exterior incorporates design elements from traditional Gothic style buildings of brick and stone, all skillfully adapted to wood construction. A roof-top spire, corner pinnacles, and board and batten siding, all crafted from California redwood, convey a sense of verticality to the design. Inside, a Gothic hammer beam truss system spans the nave, offering an unbroken view of the apse and pulpit. In 1913 an annex was added to the south side of the church. Official recognition refers to the church and its annex on their legal lot.

Heritage Value

Church of Our Lord was designated a national historic site of Canada in 1990 because:
- it is one of the finest examples of Carpenter’s Gothic on the West Coast of Canada.

Following a dramatic schism within the city’s Anglican diocese, the Reverend Edward Cridge had the Church of Our Lord designed by noted pioneer West Coast architect John Teague, and constructed in 1875 by builders Haywood and Jenkinson for the Reformed Episcopal Church in Victoria . The building’s Gothic Revival character was enhanced by exploiting the advantages of board and batten siding, which reinforced the vertical thrust of its gabled roof, pinnacles and roof-top spire. The church interior includes a fine example of hammer beam vaulting. Famed regional architect Samuel Maclure designed a complementary 1913 church annex known as the Cridge Memorial Hall.

Source: Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, Minutes, June 1990.

Character-Defining Elements

The key elements relating to the heritage value of this site include:
- the form and massing of the church with its rectangular, single-storey body under a gable roof, truncated transept arms, and polygonal apse;
-the Gothic Revival style elements translated in wood including the rose window over the entry porch, the large traceried pointed arch windows of the side elevations, the elaborate pointed arch windows on the transept ends, the corner buttresses capped with pinnacles, the wall buttresses, the Gothic arched entrance and vestibule, and the spire-topped belfry;
- the High Victorian taste for surface variety and texture evident in the decorated frieze and gables, board and batten siding;
- the Gothic Revival style interior features including the hammer beam truss system;
- the use of California redwood as a primary building material;
- the complementary design and materials of the Cridge Memorial Hall.

Recognition

Jurisdiction

Federal

Recognition Authority

Government of Canada

Recognition Statute

Historic Sites and Monuments Act

Recognition Type

National Historic Site of Canada

Recognition Date

1990/06/22

Historical Information

Significant Date(s)

n/a

Theme - Category and Type

Function - Category and Type

Current

Religion, Ritual and Funeral
Religious Facility or Place of Worship

Historic

Architect / Designer

John Teague

Builder

Haywood & Jenkinson

Additional Information

Location of Supporting Documentation

National Historic Sites Directorate, Documentation Centre, 5th Floor, Room 89, 25 Eddy Street, Gatineau, Quebec

Cross-Reference to Collection

Fed/Prov/Terr Identifier

91

Status

Published

Related Places

northeast elevation

Church of Our Lord

The Church of Our Lord is a Carpenter Gothic style wooden church with a separate annex called the Cridge Memorial Hall, located on the corner of Humbolt and Blanshard Streets.

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