Designed by noted PEI architect George E. Baker, construction of the church began in 1890. This impressive edifice replaced an 1823 church which had become outgrown by the congregation. The church's cornerstone was laid on July 26, 1891, after which construction continued for another year and a half, culminating it its dedication on December 8, 1892.
St. John The Baptist Cemetery is behind the church to the northeast, immaculately cared for. While Find A Grave has listings for only 39 interments, we know there are several times that, possibly 250 or more. The earliest listed at Find A Grave is that of Catherine O'Farrell McNeill born May 1, 1830, who died on May 20, 1862.
Interestingly, this church's first parish priest's name was John A MacDonald, the same as Canada's first Prime Minister, who, again interestingly, died the year this church's cornerstone was laid.
Recently Father Albin Arsenault oversaw a six-year restoration of this historic church - from steeple to altar, incurring no debt - restoration was paid for as it occurred.
St. John the Baptist Roman Catholic Church
DESCRIPTION OF HISTORIC PLACE
This well maintained ornate church is designed in the High Victorian Gothic style. It features a symmetrical facade with a rectangular nave framed by twin square towers with buttresses. Side aisles are located on each side of the nave with a clerestory above. A sacristy is located at the back or east end of the church. The pointed arch Gothic windows feature tracery and hood moulding. The gable roof has decorative bargeboard and a cross at its peak. Each spire is also topped by a cross. The east end of the church has a decorative corner turret rising from each corner.
HERITAGE VALUE
The church is valued for its well preserved High Victorian Gothic architecture; as an example of the work of Island architect, George Edwin Baker; and for its importance to the heritage of the Acadian people of Miscouche.
The first church on this site was constructed in 1823. It was a much more subdued building featuring a gable roof with eave returns and a small tower set on the roof of the church. An engraving of this building was shown in Meacham's 1880 Atlas of PEI.
By the late 1880s, this small church was proving inadequate to the needs of the parish and it was decided to construct a larger building. Under the direction of Rev. John A. MacDonald, the noted PEI architect, George E. Baker, was employed to design the new church, while Schurman and Clark Company of Summerside were the contractors.
Work began in 1890, with the cornerstone being laid on July 26, 1891. It was completed and dedicated on December 8, 1892.
The impressive building has a great deal of intricacy in its exterior cladding and trim. Some of these features include the gingerbread bargeboard of the gable roof; the shingle and board and batten cladding; and the crocket decoration on the triangular moulding above the three doors of the entrance.
The church bells were later installed in 1901 and 1905. The church represents a rebirth of pride Acadians had in their culture and religious heritage following the 1884 Miscouche Conference. This was the second of three Acadian National Congresses held in the Maritimes and was the one where the Acadians adopted their distinctive flag.
The well preserved church remains a landmark in the community and is a source of pride to its parishoners.
CHARACTER-DEFINING ELEMENTS
- the rectangular nave with side aisles and clerestory
- the twin square towers on the facade
- the sacristy at the back of the nave
- the pointed arch Gothic windows with tracery
- the hood moulding with crockets
- the gable roof with decorative bargeboard
- the crosses at the peak of each spire and at the peak of the gable roof
- the decorative turrets
- the buttresses on the tower, nave, and sacristy
From Historic Places Canada