Description of Historic Place

The Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary is a Municipal Heritage Property occupying .8 ha in the Rural Municipality of Redberry No. 435. The property features a small one-storey, wood-frame East- European church built in 1910 and a cemetery located approximately 45 kilometres southeast of the Village of Hafford.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary lies in its association with the predominantly Ukrainian settlers in the local area. The church was built in 1910 by congregation members without church funds on land donated by Yurko Belyk. The majority of the settlers in the area came from the Horodenka area of the Ukraine, who gave the church the same name as the church in that area. It served both Ukrainian Orthodox and Ukrainian Catholic parishioners, until Catholics built their own church in 1911. Until 1918, the church was part of the Greek Orthodox communion because there was no Ukrainian Orthodox Bishop for Canada. With the the appointment of the first Canadian Ukrainian Bishop that year, the church joined the Ukrainian communion. By the 1960s, due to population decline in the area, the church was only being used for services once a year and currently is only used on special occasions. Many members of the congregation are buried in the adjacent cemetery, which is blessed annually by Ukrainian Orthodox clergy.

The heritage value of property also lies in its historical integrity and architecture dating from its time of construction. It retains its original wood-frame construction and iconostas. The property exhibits characteristics common to small churches built on the prairies in the early-twentieth century, including its gable roof, rectangular plan and pointed-arch windows. It also displays some features associated with East European churches, such as its banyas and detached belfry.

Source: Rural Municipality of Redberry

No. 435 Bylaw 8-85.

Character-Defining Elements

The heritage value of The Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary lies in the following character-defining elements:
-those elements that reflect the property’s association with the area’s Ukrainian settlers, such as the banyas topped with the Orthodox Cross, detached belfry, cemetery and the Cyrillic alphabet utilized on many of the grave stones;
-those elements that reflect the building’s historical integrity and architecture, such as its wood-frame construction, Iconostas, gable roof, rectangular plan, pointed-arch windows and position on its original location.