St. Norbert's, begun in 1839, is one of the older churches in Lunenburg. It remains the only Catholic Church built in Lunenburg since its resettlement in the 1750s. This is one of the few churches which wears a true "Witch`s Hat", a tall octagonal spire with wide flared eaves, the eaves decorated with carved wooden brackets, three per side. The spire stands atop a square bell tower inset into the façade of the nave.
Apparently the exterior has undergone a series of changes, major and minor, over the years as design fads changed. Though Georgian in it basic design, the building has taken on a number of Gothic Revival elements.
Inside the church we found several stained glass windows. They line the nave on each side, with a double glass over the entrance in the portico and another larger window in the chancel. The stained glass appears to be a relatively recent addition as the style is not in keeping with windows of the early nineteenth century. At least some of the windows would have been installed along with a wing added in the 1980s.
The Roman Catholic faith in Lunenburg County had its origins in the 1630s with the Acadian settlements at Fort Point, near the Mouth of the LaHave River and at Merligueche on the shore of what is now Lunenburg Harbour. The original settlement of Lunenburg however, consisted almost exclusively of "Foreign Protestants"" and it was not until 1830 that two German Catholic families moved to the area and set up a small chapel in the home of Dr. Joseph Steverman. By 1839, work began on a church, and a year later Father Edmond Doyle celebrated the first mass in the new church named after the German, Saint Norbert.
Throughout most of the nineteenth century the church was served by priests from other parishes. The dwindling Catholic population combined with the opening of Saint Joseph's Church at Bridgewater in 1889, resulted in the closing of Saint Norbert's for 40 years. By the 1930s,however, a growing Catholic population comprised mostly of Newfoundland fishermen and their families led to the re-opening of the church. The building was restored and in the early 1980s two new wings were added.
The church's architecture has evolved over the years from its late Georgian style, to include many British classical revival and New England Meeting House influences, and Lunenburg carpenter Gothic style elements which became popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Thanks to the hard work of its parishioners the parish has survived and provides a lasting legacy to the Roman Catholics of the Town.
From a Historical Marker at the Church
St. Norbert's Roman Catholic Church
DESCRIPTION OF HISTORIC PLACE
St. Norbert's Roman Catholic Church is an ell-shaped wooden church in the Georgian style. It is situated on the corner of York and King Streets in Old Town Lunenburg, a Heritage Conservation District. The steeple is particularly worth noting, as the shape is reminiscent of a witch's hat. Designation extends to both the building and surrounding property, including a small cemetery adjacent to the church.
HERITAGE VALUE
St. Norbert's Roman Catholic Church is valued for both its historical and aesthetic character. Built in 1839, St. Norbert's is the centre of the Roman Catholic community in Lunenburg. In the 1890s, the dwindling number of parishioners caused St. Norbert's to close its doors for forty years. However, in the 1930s, an influx of Catholic fishermen from Newfoundland arrived in Lunenburg, and the church was reopened. Since that time, the congregation has grown steadily, and in 1982 a wing was added to the side of the church, designed to match the original structure.
The church's scale, wooden exterior and proximity to the street blend with the surrounding streetscape. St. Norbert's is a fine example of Georgian ecclesiastical architecture, blending both British and New England elements. Sometime after 1890 the original tower was shortened to today's form, a distinctive 'witch's hat' shape with ornamental modillions surrounding the lower edge. A small cemetery is located immediately beside the building, to the west, on York Street. It is the only cemetery left on church property in Lunenburg.
CHARACTER-DEFINING ELEMENTS
- the green space and close proximity of lawn, cemetery and church, including the only intact cemetery on church property in Lunenburg;
- the scale and mass of the building, including symmetrically placed buttresses on both the nave and additional ell, and the proximity of the church to the street;
- traditional Gothic elements, including the gable roof over the nave, lancet windows on the nave, and round headed, louvred windows on the tower;
- the steeple, in a shape reminiscent of a 'witch's hat', with ornamental modillions;
- the wooden shingle exterior, characteristic of the Lunenburg area, and bracketing detail under the eaves.
From Historic Places Canada