Description du lieu patrimonial

The Uigg Baptist Church is located in the rural PEI community of Uigg. It stands adjacent to the Uigg Cemetery and has a backdrop of trees. The Victorian building has a gabled roof, clapboard siding, and Gothic Revival style windows. The registration includes the footprint of the building.

Valeur patrimoniale

The elegant simplicity of the Uigg Baptist Church is a testament to the Scottish pioneers who settled the area in 1829, coming from their home in Uig, Isle of Skye, Scotland. Their arrival came after that of the famous Selkirk Settlers who had landed in 1803, but both groups were "Skye Pioneers" and were related to each other. The current building is a rare example in PEI of a "Scotch Baptist" Meeting House. It was constructed in 1874, replacing an earlier building that had served since 1852. Before that, services were held in the homes of the members.

Many adherents to this congregation made lasting contributions to life in PEI and abroad. Neil MacLeod served as premier of PEI (1889-1891). Malcolm MacLeod became first president of the Island Telephone Company. The poet, Margaret Furness MacLeod, and the clergyman, the Rev. Dr. John Alexander Gordon, both came from the area. The cemetery is also the resting place of the grandparents of Canadian author, Pierre Berton's wife.

Although closed as a church for some time, the building still contains its original pews and organ.

Source: PEI Heritage Advisory Committee Files

Éléments caractéristiques

The heritage value of the Uigg Baptist Church is embodied by the following elements:

- the gabled roof
- the interior rafters which are pegged and not nailed.
- the original clapboard siding
- the sets of 3 Gothic Revival windows complete with glazing bars and original glass on each side elevation
- the symmetrical front elevation with upper fixed triangular Gothic Revival window
- the entrance door with Gothic Revival window above it
- the 2 Gothic Revival windows on either side of the door