Description of Historic Place

Lakeburn Catholic Church is located on Champlain Street in the Lakeburn sector of Dieppe. This one-and-a-half-storey, rectangular wood-frame building has a gable roof and a corner bell tower.

Heritage Value

Lakeburn Catholic Church is designated a Local Historic Place for its association with the religious life of the Acadians, for its association with the many families that worked at various jobs related to the community effort during the Second World War and for its association with notable Acadian contractor, Abbey Landry.

Lakeburn Catholic Church illustrates the Acadians’ respect for the Catholic religion in the region. In 1943, the federal government built 200 units of "Wartime Housing" to accommodate the employees of the Clark Rousse airplane factory, located adjacent to the newly built Moncton Airport, constructed in 1939. In 1945, this church was constructed to serve the spiritual needs of this population. The fact that a church was built so quickly for what could possibly have been a temporary community is a testament to the strength of the Catholic religion within the Acadian community. The church also served as a meeting place and mess hall for these workers near the end of the Second World War. A year after the church was built, Notre-Dame-de-Lorette Parish was created.

Abbey Landry was chosen as contractor for the construction of Lakeburn Catholic Church in 1945, and the blessing took place in 1946. During the years 1940-1960, Landry was the most important Acadian contractor for the construction of buildings and churches in the Maritime Provinces. The building is an example of Landry’s vernacular churches from this period, this style reflecting both war time constraints and the possible temporary nature of the community. Much of the simple original interior finish remains.

Source: Dieppe City Hall, Historic Places File D27

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements that describe the architecture of the Lakeburn Catholic Church include:
- rectangular 1 ½-storey massing;
- wood frame construction;
- gable roof;
- square bell tower with Italianate triple windows and louvres located on the northwest corner ;
- symmetrical fenestration of rectangular windows, many with rectangular sidelights and transom windows;
- interior finish.