Description of Historic Place

The Holy Trinity Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church is a Municipal Heritage Property located in the Rural Municipality of Grant No. 372 approximately three kilometres west of the Hamlet of Smuts. The designation applies to a single-storey, wood-frame church built in 1925.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Holy Trinity Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church lies in its association with the establishment of the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox faith in the Smuts district. Prior to the construction of the church, religious services were held in the homes of the local parishioners. In 1925, a group of Ukrainian settlers from the district gathered enough manpower and materials to build the church on its present location.

The heritage value of this site also lies in its architecture. Typical of many other Ukrainian churches built across the prairies during this period, the church is built in a cruciform pattern and has three distinct onion-shaped domes; one directly above the altar, and the remaining two atop adjacent towers at the front of the building. Additional heritage value also lies in the historical integrity of the church’s interior. The interior remains fully adorned with religious artifacts that follow the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox faith, such as the three-staged cross, icon screen and pews.

Source:

Rural Municipality of Grant No. 372 Bylaw 3-84.

Character-Defining Elements

The heritage value of the Holy Trinity Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church resides in the following character-defining elements:
- those elements associated with the establishment of the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox faith in the Smuts district, such as the building’s position on its original location;
-those architectural elements typical of Ukrainian Orthodox churches built in western Canada, such as its cruciform shape, the presence and location of three onion-shaped domes with the orthodox crosses on each, the placement and style of the many windows that allow natural light into the building, the two towers and the detached bell tower;
-interior religious artifacts that depict the building’s use as a place of worship, such as the icon screen and many paintings of the patron saints.