Description of Historic Place

St. Andrew's Anglican Church, is a 1 1/2-storey Carpenter Gothic church building located on the north side of Main Street in the Village of Doaktown. This wooden building was completed in 1892.

Heritage Value

St. Andrew's Anglican Church is valued for its religious architecture, for its association with individuals of both local and provincial prominence and for its spiritual significance.

Bishop John Medley, New Brunswick's first Anglican Bishop, was keen to ecclesiastical architecture and was responsible for the construction of more than one hundred churches of this same architectural style within the province over a span of forty-seven years. Construction of St. Andrew's Anglican Church in Doaktown began in 1891 and was completed in 1892, the year of his death. St. Andrew's Anglican Church is also associated with Robert Swim of Doaktown, who donated the land for its construction, and with Sir John Allen, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New Brunswick, who laid the cornerstone during construction. The value of the church also resides in the participation of members of the local community during its construction. Local builders Dan Miner and J.E. Doak were directly involved in the construction of the church. A special train was serviced from Fredericton, the Seat of the Church Diocese, to Doaktown on May 24, 1892 for St. Andrew's Consecration Service. During the initial years services were held once a month as there was no resident minister. Student missionaries served this Parish form 1895-1913. Following this, a resident minister was established.

Also of historic significance is the font cover located in the baptistery made by a local artist from a locally significant tree, 'Squire Doak's Elm Tree'. This font cover is one of several church furnishings made from the wood of the tree that was recognized in the book "Great Trees of New Brunswick".

Source: Village of Doaktown, Village Office, Site File # 07-05

Character-Defining Elements

Character-defining elements of the exterior of St. Andrew's Anglican Church include:
- steeply pitched gable roof;
- side gabled vestry on chancel south wall;
- side entrance sheltered by a gabled vestibule;
- belfry with louvered Gothic vents;
- belfry located on west end supported by open beams within the bapistery;
- memorial stained glass windows;
- positioning of the building on an east-west axis.

Character-defining elements of the interior of St. Andrew's Anglican Church include:
- open beam ceiling;
- hardwood floor;
- Gothic tracery in the rood screen separating the nave from the chancel;
- font cover made of elm wood taken from Squire Doak's Elm.