A true country church, Christ Church stands at the end of a lane off the Trans Canada Highway in a quiet and secluded location by the bay. The church was built in 1842 by United Empire Loyalists who had fled the American Revolution in the 1780s.
Primarily Georgian in design, the building has some Gothic elements, particularly the Gothic arches over the openings, including the vents in the bell tower. The steeple, in particular, is very much representative of wooden steeples of the 1840s, 50s and 60s - square, tall and having a substantial flare toward the eaves.
The churchyard cemetery, which backs onto Pownal Bay, is fairly large. We're not sure when it was begun, but assume that it is equally as old as the church.
Canadian Headstones lists 157 interments in the cemetery and there are likely a few more than that as it remains in use by the community. The oldest grave listed at Canadian Headstones, that of John Nelson, birth date unknown, is dated August 24th, 1856, aged 82 years. There may well be unmarked graves in the cemetery, given its age.
Christ Church Anglican
DESCRIPTION OF HISTORIC PLACE
The Christ Church Anglican is a well preserved, Georgian-style church located in Cherry Valley, overlooking the south shore of Pownal Bay.
HERITAGE VALUE
Christ Church Anglican is valued for its Georgian-style architecture, for its associations with United Empire Loyalist settlement in PEI, the history of the Anglican church on PEI, and for its contribution to the community of Cherry Valley.
The community of Cherry Valley was established in the 1780s by United Empire Loyalists fleeing the American Revolution. Cherry Valley may have received its name from James Lewis Hayden (1749-1832) who named it for the town in Ulster County, New York where he was born. Cherry Valley, New York is notable in American history for being the site of the Cherry Valley Massacre, which took place in 1778 during the American Revolution.
The eldest daughter of James Lewis Hayden, Margaret, was married to Major Joseph Beers (1754-1810), an ensign of the 5th Battalion of the King's Rangers. The Beers and Hayden families played a central role in the establishment of Christ Church Anglican. The church land was donated by the Beers family and the contractor who built the church in 1842 was Thomas Beers, grandson of Joseph Beers. The known carpenters were Thomas Tweedy and a Mr. Storey. The church was built under the direction of Frederick Downe Panter who was the first rector.
Christ Church Anglican, Cherry Valley combines many original Georgian-style elements such as the simple gabled roof, the large eave returns and wide cornerboards on the body and sacristy with Gothic-inspired elements such as the arched windows are found on the south elevation. Gingerbread trim on the south and east eaves and the tower and gothic steeple which was added around 1900. The north elevation was extended by a small addition in the 1970s.
Christ Church Anglican in Cherry Valley continues to be an important part of the landscape of its community.
CHARACTER-DEFINING ELEMENTS
- the Georgian-style gabled roof
- the large eave returns and wide cornerboards
- the original wood clapboard on the sacristy
- the Gothic-style windows on the south side of the church
- the drop, triple floweret gingerbread trim on the south and east eaves of the body of the church
- the finial on the east end of the roof
- the Gothic-inspired tower and steeple
From Historic Places Canada