Description of Historic Place

The Markerville Lutheran Church is a small church located in the Hamlet of Markerville. It is a rectangular, gable-roofed building measuring approximately twelve metres by seven metres in size. Its exterior walls are clad in wooden drop-siding and the roof is clad in cedar shingles. Four rectangular windows line its east and west elevations. A square bell tower with an eight-sided steeple projects from the front (south) facade. The bell tower features the main entryway and a gothic-arched transom, four gothic-arched louvered openings, two arched windows, a curved wrought iron sign and a circular wooden decoration. A serious hail storm in 2006 smashed the original coloured glass windows on the west elevation. The glass from these windows was collected and used to make stained glass windows for the front of the church. The church is situated on a landscaped lot and lies in close proximity to other historic buildings, including the Markerville Creamery and the Fensala Hall.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Markerville Lutheran Church lies in its association with Icelandic settlement in Alberta. It is also significant as an excellent and early example of Lutheran church architecture and may be the only Icelandic Lutheran church ever constructed in the province.

In 1888 and 1889, two groups of Icelandic settlers from the United States migrated to Canada. They filed for a homestead in a relatively isolated area around the Medicine River and established a number of small rural communities. The community of Tindastoll (later renamed Markerville) developed into the major supply centre for the Icelandic settlers. Although Tindastoll was growing, there was no Icelandic church or minister in the settlement until 1898, at which time a young student of divinity arrived from Winnipeg to temporarily minister to the Lutheran community. By the close of the first decade of the 1900s, Markerville boasted a post office, a school, a creamery, a community hall, a hardware store, two general stores, a blacksmith, a butcher, a pool hall and a library. A church to serve the Icelanders' religious needs was not constructed until 1907 - two decades after settlement - possibly because of deep religious divisions within the community. During the mid-1800s, the Icelandic Lutheran community in the United States was split between those who adhered to the generally liberal theology of the Lutheran Church of Iceland and those who followed the more conservative principles of the Norwegian Synod of the American Lutheran Church. In Alberta's Icelandic settlements, social clubs and debating societies often served the same social purpose that the church occupied in other ethnic and religious communities. Religious services in Markerville were carried out by traveling clergymen and were held in private homes and in community halls. A congregation was officially established in 1900. In 1905, a full-time minister was hired. Two years later, construction of a church began. Community groups, notably the Ladies Aid Society known as "Vonin", raised funds for building materials and furnishings. The church was completed in May 1907. The church's full-time, resident minister adhered to the conservative Lutheran tradition. He was dismissed in 1909 after only two years with the congregation. Although he continued to serve on a part-time basis until 1935, the Markerville Lutheran Church was served mainly by traveling ministers. Regular services ceased in 1963.

The Markerville Lutheran Church is an early and excellent example of Lutheran church architecture and may be the only Icelandic Lutheran church ever constructed in Alberta. The simple form of the building, its largely unornamented exterior, and the projecting central tower with steeple are typical of rural Lutheran churches in Alberta. The same sensibility informs the design of the interior space, which features white walls and simple, well-crafted furnishings and finishings. The church remains largely unaltered since its construction and represents one of the earliest, most typical, and most intact of the many historic Lutheran churches constructed in Alberta's rural areas.

Source: Alberta Culture and Community Spirit, Historic Resources Management Branch (File: Des. 2269)

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the heritage value of the Markerville Lutheran Church include such elements as its:

Site
- prominent situation on a corner lot in the Hamlet of Markerville;
- grass landscaping;
- hedge running the perimeter of the property.

Exterior
- white exterior walls;
- square bell tower with eight-sided, flared, wood shingle-clad steeple, decorative brackets and dog-tooth shingle trim centrally-located on and projecting from the front (south) elevation;
- Celtic cross surmounting the tower;
- four gothic-arched, louvered ventilation openings in the belfry;
- two rectangular window openings with gothic arches on the east and west sides of the bell tower;
- medium-pitched, wood shingle-clad gable roof;
- south-facing front entryway surmounted by a gothic-arched transom of colored glass located in the base of the bell tower;
- circular, wooden decorative element on the south side of the bell tower surmounting the main doorway;
- fenestration pattern of four rectangular window openings on the east and west elevations;
- secondary entrance located on the eastern edge of the rear (north) elevation;
- exterior walls clad in wooden drop-siding;
- sandstone foundation;
- wrought iron "1907" date and arched sign reading "Markerville Lutheran Church" surmounting the front entry.

Interior
- white interior walls clad in vertically-oriented, v-joint lumber;
- barrel-vaulted ceiling clad in horizontally-oriented, white-painted v-joint lumber;
- open floor plan of the worship area;
- stained wood finishes on the relatively simple altar rail and lectern;
- presence of original 1907 organ, donated by the "Vonin" Ladies Aid group;
- presence of folding theatre-style seating, acquired second hand from a nearby theatre in the 1940s;
- extant original wood strip flooring;
- extant original, light gray-painted mill work and wood trim on window and door frames;
- stained glass from the remains of storm-destroyed west facing windows used in newly made stained glass windows on the bell tower.