Description of Historic Place

The Baptist Church is a simple gable-roofed church building prominently sited on the northwest corner of the intersection of 2nd Avenue NE and Alexander Street NE in Salmon Arm, British Columbia.

Heritage Value

The Baptist Church (now the Salvation Army New Hope Community Church) is significant for its historical, social, and cultural values, primarily as a marker of the early and enduring role of church organizations in the community.

Constructed by volunteer labour in 1909, the building has social and spiritual value as an important example of the social cohesion that was centred on Christian fellowship in the community's early years. Local residents Barney Peters and Preacher C.H. Calhoun logged the trees that were milled into lumber for the church, while the congregation held work bees until the building was completed. The church was constructed at a time when automobile travel was becoming commonplace in Salmon Arm, and land speculators anticipated that, with the completion of new roads and easy automobile access to neighbouring communities, property values would increase.

The church's simple gable form and original materials (such as wood framing siding, and roofing) and communal construction make it an example of local frontier building practice. Its simple form as seen in early photographs is absolutely typical of early churches of modest means in the smaller towns of British Columbia, with details such as the gable-roofed front entry that indicate its function as a religious institution. The building is important because it exemplifies the physical adaptability of the wood frame structure, which could easily accommodate entry door locations and additions.

The Baptist Church is important in the cultural history of the town for its typical story of adaptive reuse. The original building has continued to be used for religious and community functions, including the Church of Christ, Lions Club and the Salvation Army.

The siting is an important record of the growth of a small church precinct on the southern outskirts of the original town. The church later formed part of a precinct connecting the commercial downtown and the residential area south of what is now Okanagan Avenue E.

Source: City of Salmon Arm, Development Services Department

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the heritage character of the Baptist Church include its:

Site:
- location on 2nd Avenue NE between original downtown core and early residential area south of Okanagan Avenue E
- original siting

Building:
- simple gable form of original portion of building
- rectangular shape
- simple regular punched window openings down the sides of the hall
- original wood structure