Text from the plaque:
Metropolitan United Church is the descendant of a small, frame chapel built in 1818 on the corner of King and Jordan Streets, now the site of the Canadian Bank of Commerce building. Metropolitan Church was erected in 1870, and the interior was rebuilt in 1929, following a disastrous fire. It now stands, together with the church house, as a symbol of Christian witness and service in downtown Toronto.
From: Wikipedia
Metropolitan United Church
Metropolitan United Church is a large neo-Gothic church in downtown Toronto, Canada. It is one of the largest and most prominent churches of the United Church of Canada. It is located on Queen Street East at the corner of Church Street in Toronto's Garden District.
History:
The congregation, originally Methodist, was founded in 1818. It was originally housed in a small chapel on King Street. In 1833 a larger structure was completed on Adelaide Street and it moved to its present location in 1872 when the building was dedicated as the Metropolitan Wesleyan Methodist Church.
Design of the Metropolitan Methodist church building:
Designed by Henry Langley, who was to draw "the ubiquitous cloak of decorous gothicism over the face of Ontario in the 1870s" the church became known as the "cathedral of Methodism...a monument to ... energy, magnetism and culture....No church in Toronto has such great advantages of position....The handsome grounds of this church form one of the finest spaces in this city....The entire building is of white brick, with abundant cut stone dressing. It is a modernized form of the French thirteenth century Gothic, with nave, transepts and choir."
It played an important role in the city that was occasionally nicknamed the "Methodist Rome".
Its immediate neighbours are St James's Cathedral (Anglican) and St Michael's Cathedral (Roman Catholic) and the trio of similarly-designed churches are a striking Christian witness immediately adjacent to Canada's financial hub. The church's website describes the building in customary evangelical Protestant terms, regarding the nave rather than the altar ("communion table") area as its "sanctuary."
Metropolitan Methodist becomes Metropolian United:
In 1925 the Methodist Church of Canada merged with the Presbyterians and Congregationalists to form the United Church of Canada. Metropolitan then acquired its current name. The first General Council of the United Church was held there in 1925. In 1928 the church was almost destroyed by fire, but it was quickly rebuilt keeping the same design with the help of the Methodist Massey family, of Massey-Ferguson fame. In 1930 Casavant Frères installed the largest pipe organ in Canada in the newly refurbished building. The church is also known for its 54 bell carillon that is regularly heard throughout the neighbourhood.
Today:
Today the church is known for its progressiveness. It has long played an important role in Toronto's Gay and Lesbian community that is centred just to the north on Church and Wellesley. The church also offers a wide array of services for the poor and homeless. The head minister Malcolm, will soon leave the church and enter retirement.