Description of Historic Place

Mineral Free Baptist Meetinghouse, a small single-storey rectangular meetinghouse, stands at a crossroads amid rolling hills and farmlands, 9 kilometres north of Bath, in the community of Mineral in the north western corner of Carleton County. This simple, functional place of worship, one of the last surviving examples of its type in this area, reflects the strong Baptist faith that characterized this part of 19th century in New Brunswick.

Heritage Value

Mineral Free Baptist Meetinghouse is designated a Provincial Historic Site for its architecture and its association with the Free Baptist congregation.

Constructed by pragmatic builders in 1883 and dedicated on October 13 of that year, this little rectangular gabled building is historically important to the province as an example of the Free Baptist presence throughout sections of rural New Brunswick. The simple, even austere architectural style belies the significance of the Mineral Free Baptist Meetinghouse. The plain façade and overall proportions of this “neat and comfortable” house of worship are similar in character to other such meetinghouses throughout New Brunswick; however, most have not survived to the present day.

Influenced profoundly by the ministry of Canada’s foremost eighteenth century revivalist, Henry Alline, the Free Baptists became the largest religious body along the Upper St. John River Valley through the 19th century. This was especially so in Carleton County. The Free Baptists reached their height circa 1870, just a few years before the Mineral meetinghouse was built. Later, they merged with the United Baptist Convention of the Atlantic Provinces in 1905. The Reverend Ezekiel Sipprell (1799-1895) a Free Baptist preacher active throughout the settlements of Carleton County is acknowledged as the person most responsible for the building of this meetinghouse.

Department of Wellness, Culture and Sport - Heritage Branch, Site File: Vol.IX-116

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements that describe Mineral Free Baptist Meetinghouse include:
- context and location at a crossroads amid the rolling hills and farmlands of rural Carleton County;
- exterior architectural treatment including straightforward, rectangular one-storey, wood frame construction;
- wooden shingles on the back of the building;
- austere exterior decorative ornamentation;
- plain symmetrical façade with central entry door;
- medium pitched gable roof with returned eaves;
- single chimney protruding above the peak of the roof;
- interior features, including original hand-made pine plank benches of different lengths, some with mortise and tenon construction, a noteworthy “Connell Bros. No. 3" wood stove, made in Woodstock N.B., floor constructed of Douglas Pine boards, period wainscoting along the lower walls and the stovepipe running from the wood stove at the back the length of the building and exiting through a chimney directly above the pulpit;
- three plain rectangular double-hung six over six windows as evenly spaced bays on each side wall, with original frames and interior windowsills;
- original “Christian” door with panels configured to depict the Christian cross above and the open Bible below.