Description of Historic Place

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church is a large stone Gothic Revival style church located on Church Lane in Dalhousie. It is on a prominent crest overlooking the town and the Restigouche River. The Local Historic Place designation is for the building on its footprint.

Heritage Value

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church is designated a Local Historic Place due to its architectural and historical values.

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church is probably the best example of Gothic Revival architectural in Dalhousie. Massively constructed of dressed granite blocks, the church displays Gothic Revival style with its steep cross gabled metal roof, pointed arch windows and two large towers.

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church, built in 1931, occupies the site of two preceding Catholic churches; the first was built in 1860 and burnt down in 1886, the second burnt circa 1930. The size and grandeur of the present church attests to the strength of the Catholic congregation of Dalhousie

Source: Restigouche Regional Museum, Dalhousie, Local Historic Places file: "Eglise Saint-Jean-Baptiste".

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements that describe Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church's Gothic Revival style include:
- 2-storey symmetrical massing;
- dressed granite block exterior walls;
- steep cross-gabled roof;
- narrow, tall pointed arch stained glass windows;
- stained glass rose window;
- two large and four smaller towers with sharp pointed spires and filials;
- Gothic window over main entrance;
- strong bilateral symmetry.

The other character-defining element that describes Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church include:
- consecrated place of worship since 1860.