Lower Cape Baptist stands in a tiny pocket of small farms along the western shore of the Bay of Fundy, in an area where civilization consists of not much more than a few farms hacked out of the wilderness and a nearby campground.
Unable to find any information on Lower Cape Baptist I contacted the present minister, who kindly replied and related the following;
(not quoted verbatim):
Lower Cape Baptist was established in 1825, the first building being the
Calkins Meeting House, built at that time. Destroyed by fire in 1888, it was replaced by the present structure in 1892. Since the church's establishment it has been served by no less than 52 ministers.
Another of several churches we encountered in the Maritimes with a severely truncated steeple, this may be another victim of a severe winter storm. It seems that a great many steeples in the Maritimes have hit the ground during one of these storms.
Having been restored in recent times, the church is today entirely clad in vinyl siding, with rectangular windows throughout. The steeple/bell tower is an interesting one, set into the front façade of the building with a small gabled portico over the entrance, a single window above and two vents in the belfry, one in the front and one in the side. Though many windows have leaded and bevelled glass, we saw no stained glass. Given the utilitarian exterior of the building, it's impossible to imagine what it looked like when built. Its age, though, is betrayed by its foundation, made of large cut stones, possibly sandstone or freestone.
Stretching out behind the church is
Mountain View Cemetery, originally known as Calkins Cemetery. It predates the meeting house by at least 15 years. In the cemetery are just over 450 headstones, many for multiple persons. The name, Calkins Cemetery, comes from the Calkin family, on whose land, presumably, the cemetery was established as a family cemetery. In the cemetery are the remains of 18 family members. A great many of the headstones are from the nineteenth century. The first burial was that of Jeremiah Calkins, the ten year old son of James & Elizabeth Calkin.
His tombstone inscription:
Here lies the body of
Jeremiah
son of James & Elizabeth Calkin
who died Aug 30, 1810
in the 10th year of his age
The cemetery remains in use today.