With almost 40 stained glass windows in Charlottetown's Trinity United Church, we suppose it was inevitable that someone would eventually put together a book about them. This came about in 2015 and on November 22, 2015, CBC News ran a story on both the book and the windows themselves. The story can be read below.
Though the Wesleyan Methodists had been on the Island since the late 1700s, they did not build a church until 1813, that one being on the North side of Richmond Street, between Queen and Pownal Streets in Charlottetown. They built a new chapel in approximately 1835 on the corner of Prince and Richmond Streets. Its first service was held on July 9, 1835. After being enlarged twice, in 1840 and 1847, it again proved too small for the ever growing congregation, leading to the construction of the present brick building in 1863-1864.
The church was named First Methodist Church, remaining so until, with
Church Union in Canada in June of 1925, it became Trinity United Church. With the Clifton United (also formerly Methodist) Church in Stratford, built in 1848, the two comprise the Trinity-Clifton Pastoral Charge.
Trinity United Church's
stained glass windows
focus of Sunday sermon
Charlottetown's Trinity United celebrated its 151st anniversary with talk on 'paintings in glass'
CBC News Posted: Nov 22, 2015 1:00 PM AT
On the 151st anniversary of Trinity United Church in Charlottetown Sunday, the congregation was treated to the history of the building's stained glass windows.
Instead of hearing from the minister, retired heritage consultant Reg Porter spoke about the church's "paintings in glass."
The first stained glass window was installed in 1885, despite it being a strict Methodist church.
"They weren't even allowed to have musical instruments, like an organ, to help with the hymn singing," said Porter.
"But they got caught up in the general Victorian movement, and by 1885, they had bought a small organ, and they had made the decision to fill the great big window that we see on Prince Street — the big west window — with a stained glass window made by a prestigious Toronto glassmaker named McCausland's. And that was the beginning."
Anonymous donation
One hundred years later, almost 40 stained glass windows had been added to the church.
Porter has created a 75-page colour booklet on the windows.
"Instead of just putting in the most important windows, I included all of them, every one," he said.
Porter was going to make up just a few copies for the church tour guides, but an anonymous donation was made by a member of the congregation to allow for a wider printing.
"It was as if it was all divinely engineered somehow or other," said Porter.
The booklets are for sale and Porter says the church is interested in posting it to its website in the future.
From CBC News
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