Description of Historic Place

St. Andrew’s (Halcro) Church and Cemetery is a Municipal Heritage Property located in the Rural Municipality of Prince Albert No. 461. The 1.2-hectare property consists of a simple, late-nineteenth century, wood-frame country church and a cemetery surrounded by mature trees and bushes. The gable-roof church features Gothic-arch windows and bevelled, wood siding.

Heritage Value

This property, also known as Halcro Church is of heritage value as the place of worship for the St. Andrew's Church congregation, the third oldest organization in the Diocese of Saskatchewan. St. Andrew’s Church was established in 1878, and the congregation met in a small building to the southeast of this site. The congregation consecrated a building on this site in 1883 and the present building was moved here from the nearby Colleston district in 1903. St. Andrew’s Church maintained regular services until about 1970 and has subsequently been used for an annual June service.

The property is also of heritage value for its cemetery, which comprises the churchyard surrounding the building. The cemetery dates to at least 1882 and is the final resting place for the earliest pioneers of the settlement. Its old monuments, mature plantings and old fruit trees, and views to the South Saskatchewan River make it a peaceful and picturesque setting for the cemetery.

St. Andrew’s Church and Cemetery is also of heritage value as a tangible reminder of the settlement of Halcro which dates to 1876. The church and cemetery are amongst the last elements of the former community, which once featured St. Andrew’s (Halcro) School No. 8 as well as a Post Office established in 1887.

The heritage value of the property also lies in the pioneer, vernacular architecture of the church. Plain and dignified in appearance, the late-nineteenth century church is highlighted by Gothic-arch windows that display geometric, wooden tracery. The church rests on a fieldstone foundation and features bevelled, lapped, wooden siding and a rectangular chancel.

Source:

Rural Municipality of Prince Albert No. 461 Bylaw No. 1. of 1992

Character-Defining Elements

The heritage value of St. Andrew’s (Halcro) Church and Cemetery resides in the following character-defining elements:
-those elements of the church related to its architecture, such as its wood-frame construction, bevelled and lapped wooden siding, fieldstone foundation, rectangular form with rectangular chancel, gable roof with closed tongue-and-groove eaves, symmetrical fenestration, Gothic-arch windows with geometric tracery and eight-pane casement windows, interior wood-plank floors, tongue-and-groove-clad ceilings and wainscoting;
-those elements of the property which relate to its status as a tangible feature of the Halcro settlement, such as the historic situation of the church and cemetery at this rural location with views to the South Saskatchewan River;
-those elements of the property which relate to its historical association with the St. Andrews congregation, such as the cemetery (churchyard) with its numerous stone monuments and markers, mature trees, bushes and old fruit trees.