Description of Historic Place

The Winsloe South United Church is the only rural Protestant brick church in PEI. The style is unpretentious and includes Gothic Revival elements. It is located near the highway in rural South Winsloe, PEI. An 1850s cemetery is located near the building. The registration includes the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The Winsloe South United Church is significant because of its association with the early Bible Christian movement in PEI and due to its rare brick construction. It was constructed in 1880. It replaced a prior church building that had dated from the time of the cemetery in the 1850s. Bible Christian missionaries had first come to Prince Edward Island in 1831. The sect was a branch of the Methodist Church and was founded by William O'Bryan (1778-1868) who had started an evangelistic ministry among the farming and fishing communities of Devon and Cornwall England in 1815. Bible Christians were noted for their regular consultation of the Scriptures for guidance, an evangelical zeal for mission, and their extensive use of female preachers. Bible Christians in Canada were later incorporated back into the Methodist Church and eventually became part of the formation of the United Church of Canada in 1925.

The present church was built by local artisans, Henry and Tommy Ford, bricklayers and carpenters from Glasgow Road. The bricks were Island made at the Rocky Point brickyard across the harbour from Charlottetown. A later addition to the building was the vestry at the back in 1960.

Source: PEI Heritage Advisory Committee Files

Character-Defining Elements

The following elements contribute to the heritage value of the church:

- the gabled roof with brick chimney
- the Island made brick construction
- the one and one half storey height
- the size and placement of the doors and windows
- the curved arch Gothic Revival style of the windows which have protruding caps that slightly extend over the curved head of the window
-the carved "BC 1880" notation above the entrance door