Description of Historic Place

The Site of the Union Church and Burial Ground consists of a grassed site and a fenced-in cemetery. Located on Stannix Street in McAdam, it is also the site of the first combined Protestant Church known simply as the Union Church.

Heritage Value

The Site of the Union Church and Burial Ground is designed a Local Historic Place for being the site of the first Protestant Church, a union of the denominations of Presbyterian, Baptist, Free Christian Baptist, Methodist and Congregationalist, who held services previously in the salon of the McAdam Railway Station and in the railroad car works building. The congregations were able to co-operate in building a church on this site in 1889-1890. Early community co-operation was shown in the calling of ministers from each of the denominations represented for support. The church building, a 13.7 metre x 8.5 metre Gothic Revival wood-framed meeting hall was constructed by Joseph McVey, the building contractor of the Canadian Pacific Railway Station. It was used for 30 years and represented early community religious co-operation. The church was shared and used until around 1920, when a new larger building had to built due to the more than 200 people regularly attending.

The burial ground located behind the church was the first burial site of the remains of early settlers. Previously, these remains would have been sent back to their home communities, as almost everyone was from someplace else during this era.

Source: McAdam Village Office, Historic Places File “Site of the the Union Church and Burial Ground”

Character-Defining Elements

The character defining elements relating to the Site of the Union Church and Burial Ground are:
- vacant grassed lot where the church once stood;
- fenced-in burial site behind the grassed lot;
- seven burial plots, according to records, with only two headstones remaining.