Description of Historic Place

Rehwinkel Parsonage is a modest, one and one-half storey wood-frame Edwardian-era residence which has a front gabled roof, lapped wooden siding, decorative shingles in the gable end and a full-width open front verandah. It is located in Edmonton's McCauley residential neighbourhood on three city lots adjacent to St. Peter's Evangelical Lutheran Church to the east and a city laneway to the west.

Heritage Value

The Rehwinkel Parsonage is of heritage value for its association with Reverend Alfred Martin Rehwinkel and Dr. Bessie Rehwinkel, who used the house to create a centre for the Lutheran and Germanic communities of Alberta. It is also significant as a typical example of pre-World War One residential architecture in Edmonton.

The Rehwinkel Parsonage is significant for its association with Reverend Alfred Martin Rehwinkel and Dr. Bessie (Efner) Rehwinkel, and their involvement with Alberta's Lutheran and Germanic communities. Bessie Rehwinkel was one of the first women to graduate from medical school in North America and practiced in Wyoming before moving to Edmonton with her husband. Reverend Rehwinkel served as President of the Alberta-British Columbia Conference of the Missouri Synod, helping to create a college in Edmonton to recruit Canadian clergy in 1921 (now called Concordia University College of Alberta). He was also involved in local cultural activities, serving on the board of the Edmonton Public Library, as Director of the Edmonton Museum of Art and History, and as a founding member and President of the Edmonton Zoological Society. After World War One, Reverend Rehwinkel was a spokesperson for the German Canadian National association, created to counteract anti-German prejudice. During their occupancy of the house, constructed in 1913, from 1914 to 1921, the Rehwinkels served the Lutheran and Germanic communities by using the house as an unofficial unemployment office, a place to get information about Canadian laws and customs, and a marriage bureau for young bachelors. In addition to serving their community, they hosted many German university professors, representatives of European governments and Lutheran officials in the home. Three streets in Edmonton were named in honour of Reverend Rehwinkel's service to the city.

Additionally, the Rehwinkel Parsonage is valued as a typical example of pre-World War One vernacular architecture. The house was built in 1913 by St. Peter's Lutheran Church as the first of a three building ensemble, including the 1928 church. The simple vernacular design of this house reflects the modest resources of the congregation prior to World War One.

Source: City of Edmonton Planning and Development (Bylaw: 13679)

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the heritage character of the Rehwinkel Parsonage include its:
- location, close to St. Peter's Evangelical Lutheran Church;
- residential form, scale and massing as expressed by its one and one-half storey height and rectangular floor plan;
- front gabled roof with hipped returns, hipped roof over the front porch and gabled wall dormer on the west elevation;
- parged concrete foundation, and wood-frame balloon construction clad with lapped wooden siding and cornerboards;
- exterior features such as its full-width open front verandah with three slightly tapered columns, bay window on the west elevation with recessed vertical paneling, decorative half-cove shingles above the bay windows, in front gable end and side dormer gable end, crown moulding above windows and front door, and belt course between the siding and the foundation;
- regular fenestration with triple assembly double-hung windows with decorative mullions in the upper sash on the front facade, and single and double assembly double-hung windows.