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St. Luke's Anglican Church

140 First Street South, Souris, Manitoba, R0K, Canada

Formally Recognized: 1992/01/23

Primary elevations, from the southeast, of St. Luke's Anglican Church, Souris, 2006; Historic Resources Branch, Manitoba Culture, Heritage, Tourism and Sport, 2006
Primary Elevations
Interior view of St. Luke's Anglican Church, Souris, 2006; Historic Resources Branch, Manitoba Culture, Heritage, Tourism and Sport, 2006
Interior
Secondary elevations, from the southwest, of St. Luke's Anglican Church, Souris, 2006; Historic Resources Branch, Manitoba Culture, Heritage, Tourism and Sport, 2006
Secondary Elevations

Other Name(s)

St. Luke's Anglican Church
Souris & District Heritage Club Inc.
Souris Heritage Church
Choeur de l'église d'Angleterre
Club patrimonial de Souris et du District
Chancel of the Church of England
Église patrimoniale de Souris

Links and documents

Construction Date(s)

1883/01/01 to 1883/12/31

Listed on the Canadian Register: 2008/01/24

Statement of Significance

Description of Historic Place

The distinctive plum-and-chocolate-brown-coloured St. Luke's Anglican Church is a modest wood-frame building completed in 1883. Located at the southern end of Souris's business district, the church is prominently situated on the high bank of scenic Plum Creek, overlooking historic Victoria Park and the creek's juncture with the Souris River. The site's municipal designation applies to the building and the two lots on which it sits.

Heritage Value

Constructed just two years after the settlement of the Souris area, St. Luke's Anglican Church is one of the oldest church buildings in western Manitoba. It also is Souris's oldest public building and a tangible link with the town's formative years. Designed by A.T. Timewell, a Brandon architect, the Gothic Revival-style church has been restored to its original form and retains important architectural details, including classic Victorian-era colours. Repaired on the interior following a 1952 fire, moved to a new site after being saved from demolition in 1989 and now a museum and tea house, the solid little church is a fine historical landmark and an important feature of Souris's heritage.

Source: Town of Souris By-law No. 1608, January 20, 1992

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements of the Gothic Revival-style exterior of St. Luke's Anglican Church include:
- the building's L-shaped form, with a gable-roofed entrance porch and a rectangular-shaped main section aligned east-west under a high hipped-gable roof
- the basic materials and finishes, including tongue-and-groove wood siding painted plum in colour, plain wood trim painted chocolate brown, cedar shingles on the roof and basement walls clad in rubble stone
- the pointed arched windows and entrance door, including three tall lancet windows in the east elevation, a large single opening in the west end, asymmetrically aligned pairs of openings on the side walls and original storm windows
- wooden crosses on the peaks of the porch and main roofs

Key internal elements that define the heritage character of the building include:
- the nave's open box-like plan with walls and high hipped ceiling of plaster and lath painted an original plum colour, dark-stained wood door and window casings and pine flooring
- the raised chancel area, elegantly detailed with a tongue-and-groove V-jointed panelled ceiling of dark-stained clear fir, dark-stained wainscotting, the 1883 altar containing a bevelled carving of the words 'HOLY HOLY HOLY' and gold filigree, the hand-carved altar posts, bronze-painted rails, etc.
- additional features such as the 1906 stained-glass windows, the original church door with a marbleized porcelain doorknob, the porch door's metal knob with the Celtic symbol for the Trinity, floor grates, and basement post-and-beam supports

Recognition

Jurisdiction

Manitoba

Recognition Authority

Local Governments (MB)

Recognition Statute

Manitoba Historic Resources Act

Recognition Type

Municipal Heritage Site

Recognition Date

1992/01/23

Historical Information

Significant Date(s)

n/a

Theme - Category and Type

Building Social and Community Life
Religious Institutions

Function - Category and Type

Current

Leisure
Auditorium, Cinema or Nightclub
Leisure
Museum

Historic

Religion, Ritual and Funeral
Religious Facility or Place of Worship

Architect / Designer

A.T. Timewell

Builder

n/a

Additional Information

Location of Supporting Documentation

Town of Souris 100 2nd Street South Box 518 Souris MB R0K 2C0

Cross-Reference to Collection

Fed/Prov/Terr Identifier

M0076

Status

Published

Related Places

n/a

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