I drove past this lovely little church and cemetery and decided it just had to have a cache.
St. Columbkill’s Church and Cemetery
McDonalds Corners, Ontario - 1893
In January of 1819, Father Alexander Macdonell was named by Pope Leo XII as auxiliary Bishop of Quebec (the only diocese in Canada at the time), with responsibility for Upper Canada. On January 27, 1826, Kingston was erected as a Diocese, an historic moment as it was the first Roman Catholic diocese established in the British Empire since the 16th century Reformation. The event was historic, too, insofar as all other dioceses in Ontario have their origin, directly or indirectly, from the diocese of Kingston.
Prior to the construction of St. Columbkill’s church the priests from Westport and Bedford took turns looking after the pastoral needs of the Catholics in the western and northwestern portions of their parishes. Travel was difficult, being mainly on foot, horseback, carriage or cutter in the winter. With the advent of the K&P railway in the early 1880’s priests were able to take the train to Snow Road and points north. Oral history indicates that the custom then was for the priest to travel with the mailman to Mcdonalds Corners where he would stay at the home of Charles Garreau, celebrating Mass there and in the Legary home to the west of the village.
Records reveal that the land for St. Columbkill’s church and cemetery was purchased from William Locke in 1876 for the sum of $25. Construction of the church began early in the summer of 1893. Oral history indicates that the pastor and parishioners were joined by Catholics from neighboring parishes and members of local Protestant denominations in a series of day-long construction bees with men donating their time, skills and resources while the ladies served nourishing meals of beans, boiled meat, potatoes and pies. Construction was completed October 18, 1893. The first wedding in the church was held later that year.
Established in 1893 as a mission church of St. Mary’s, Carleton Place, St. Columbkill became a mission church of Sacred Heart, Lanark when that parish was established in 1907. St. Columbkill (also known as St. Columba) was born of royal lineage in Ireland but eschewed the regal life and became a monk, founding several monasteries in Ireland. He also founded the famous monastery at Iona in Scotland and played a major role in the introduction of Christianity to Scotland.
St. Columbkill's Church and Cemetery
Please respect your surroundings and visit only during daylight hours.