Given that Liverpool was settled in 1759 by New England Planters, it's little wonder that it is possessed of such old churches. It is a bit of a wonder, in retrospect, that fire has not yet claimed any of their old churches.
Standing on a rubble stone foundation, as was the norm in that era, the 1829 church is surrounded by its cemetery, which, according to
Rootsweb, has received 187 burials, the earliest of which was that of Patrick McLean, a native of the parish of Fermoy, County Antrim, Ireland, who died March 2, 1834, aged 49 years. No longer in use, as the church now has a new cemetery, the final burial here was that of John J. Francis (July 3,1910 - Aug. 9,1993).
The excerpt below indicates that, along with other renovations and expansions, the bell tower was "built" in the latter half of the last century. Given the appearance and style of the tower, complete with "widow's walk", we wonder if that doesn't mean to say "rebuilt" instead of "built", as it looks for all the world as if it had been built in 1829.
Relatively simple and plain inside, the church does have a few stained glass windows, two of which were dedicated to past parishioners, and an indoor "Stations of the Cross", also dedicated to a past parishioner.
Legend has it that the first Roman Catholic mass was celebrated at Port Mouton (Nova Scotia) in 1604. At that time, DeMonts' vessel arrived and two priest's rowed ashore to celebrate mass. St. Gregory's Chapel was built in Liverpool in 1829. After a short period of time it became a mission of St. Jerome's Parish in West Caledonia which was built in 1836 it remained as such until 1941.
The Church in Liverpool has undergone several significant changes structurally during its history. The original building still stands, and has been added to at least twice. In the latter half of the last century the bell tower was built. The bell in the steeple -- which rings after every mass, in praise of what has just been celebrated, was originally ordered for the church in West Caledonia, but somehow got sidetracked and ended up in Saint Gregory's tower. When the error was discovered, the people of Saint Gregory's had already grown attached to their new bell and didn't like the idea of giving it up. So, a ship's bell was purchased and given to Saint Jerome's Church instead.
In 1978, with the help of a Federal Government Grant of $16,761.00, a new porch was added to the front of the church. This very beautiful addition has greatly enhanced the looks of the church as well as contributing to a drop in the cost of heating the church. At the same time the interior of the church was renovated.
From Global Genealogy