Description of Historic Place

Located on Canada Road in the centre of downtown Edmundston, St. Paul’s United Church is a 1-1/2 story wood-frame late Neo-Gothic church with a corner tower constructed in 1926.

Heritage Value

St. Paul’s United Church is designated a Provincial Historic Site for its role in the cultural and spiritual heritage of the city of Edmundston, particularly in relation to the Protestant Anglophone minority in the Madawaska region and for its architecture.

St. Paul’s United Church community extends far beyond the normal confines of a city church. Members of the congregation trace their ancestry back to England, Scotland, Ireland and the United States. Protestant worshippers from Edmundston as well as nearby Quebec and Maine have comprised an international congregation for several generations. As such, St. Paul's United Church has helped to symbolize and sustain the English-speaking community in Edmundston.

St. Paul’s United Church is also noted for its architectural treatment of Neo-Gothic design elements in wood. Built at the same time as Edmundston’s imposing stone Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, St. Paul’s United Church exists as a more modest effort. Wholly Gothic in design and articulation, it is noteworthy for its combination of architectural elements which form an integral part of the Canada Road streetscape. It replaced a smaller Presbyterian church on the same site. St. Paul’s United Church features an elaborate corner tower that defines the building’s front facade. Contractor Moses Mitchell of Fredericton was responsible for both the plans and the construction of the church. Many of the interior elements also reflect the overall Neo-Gothic design. Planned and built concurrent with the formation of a new Canadian denomination, the United Church of Canada, St. Paul’s United Church exists as one of the first United Churches to be erected in New Brunswick.

Source: Department of Wellness, Culture and Sport, Heritage Branch, Site File.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements that relate to the religious and architectural value of St. Paul’s United Church include:
- Neo-Gothic front façade applied to a rectangular massing;
- Gothic detail consistent throughout the church’s exterior and in the treatment of windows, front entrance, roof line, tower and steeple;
- front gable defined by a steeply pitched roof with eaves;
- applied corner boards;
- regular fenestration of lancet windows;
- substantial rose window;
- large Gothic arch window with lancet tracery;
- 14 windows dedicated to the memory of the Anglophone founders of the St Paul’s United Church in Edmundston;
- front entrance elevated 7 steps from the street level;
- recessed Gothic enclosure at the base of a two-stage Gothic tower with belfry at the second level, toped by a six-sided conical spire.

The character-defining elements that relate to the interior of St. Paul’s United Church include:
- stained glass work consisting of painted and fired designs dating from the mid 20th century by Luxfer Glass Studios of Toronto;
- interior spatial layout;
- Douglas fir tongue and groove panelling;
- organ by Casavante.