Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Presbyterians and Black Sheep

St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church was given a permit to be built on this site at 121 East 12th Street  in 1933.  The architect was O. Ormrod.  The cost of the building was projected to be $2,500.  The first listing of the church in the City Directory was 1934. On  October 20, 1944 John Gibson and Dorothy Bissett were married there.  In 1950 the Pastor was the Rev. H. A. Berlis.

In 1955 it became a Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall and remained so  until it was run as the Black Sheep Restaurant from 1976 to 2000.  The site is now that of a twelve unit apartment complex.

West side of Black Sheep Restaurant

August 3, 1940 Gladys Christianson and William Downie Jr. (See Blog Post December 22, 2010.)  were married in St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church.  Their's was a wedding with a very special guest.

Around the time of the wedding William's best friend, Dave Richie, had been part of the crew on the ship Ontario Light.  The ship was in Perambucal, Brazil when he became ill.  The captain called for a doctor to come from shore, but by the time he arrived on board Dave had died from a kidney  ailment. 

The day of the wedding William did not yet know of the death of his friend.  But he did know that the last time he had seen him Dave had said, "I'll have to dance at your wedding."

Dave's mother, dad, sister Grace, and Dave's dog Punch lived at 17 or 18^th and Grand Boulevard. Punch was mostly spaniel, black with a bit of white. Before they left to go to the wedding the family put Punch in the basement. 

While Gladys and William were in front of the church at the alter they could hear a scuffling.  Then the pastor, Rev. McLean-Bell said, "What do we have here?"

Gladys and William Downie, 1940

Gladys and William looked down and there was Punch between them. 

Grace left the wedding and took the dog home, but Punch had done his best to help Dave keep his word. (From research at the North Vancouver Archives and interview with Gladys Downie for the Year 2000 Project, Your House/Our Home.)

Demolition: The building was demolished in the year 2000.
Note: An apartment building was constructed on this site.

Photo: Top photo of the Black Sheep Restaurant taken in 2000 by SW. 

               Wedding photo of Gladys and William Downie Jr.

Sunday, July 11, 2010
Sunday Church Feature

Posthumous-Methodist Church, Lynn Valley, B.C.

The Lynn Valley Methodist church was built in 1912 at 260 Institute Road. (REF 1 and 3.) It was on the west side of Institute Road, across the lane from Lynn Valley Elementary School. In 1927 St. Clement's Anglican Church was moved to 120 Institute Road (REF 1.) It was on the east side of Institute Road and was known as "St. Clements-by-the-brook". (REF 7.) On today's maps the site of the Methodist Church would be across the street from what is now the house at 3284 Institute Road.(REF 4.)

Lynn Valley Methodist Church was originally only one floor. Then a basement was built under it to make two functioning  floors. "The bottom floor was immediately put into use as a child/daycare centre." (REF 2.) This church is seen in the photo above. "It features triangular eaves, brackets, and unusual alternating vertical and horizontal wood siding". (REF 2.) The windows along the sides and in triplicate on either side of the entrance to the upper level were and of a Gothic type. The double set of steps leading to the upper level were a stylized feature.


In 1925 the Congregational, most Presbyterian, and the Methodist Churches in Canada united to become the United Church of Canada. At this time the Knox Presbyterian Church on Lynn Valley Road became the Lynn Valley United Church. The Lynn Valley Methodist Church congregation joined with and moved to the new Lynn Valley United Church. The Lynn Valley Methodist Church building was then used by Lynn Valley Elementary School as a gym. On the 1930 Fire Insurance Map the building is labeled as having Manual Training in the basement.

1930 Fire Insurance Map

 From 1945 to 1962 the lower floor of the old Methodist Church was the home of Lynn Valley Parent Participation Playschool. When the top part was moved across Mountain Highway, "The lower 1/2 of the building became a Metal Arts School and was eventually demolished."(REF 5.) It was used as "...the manual arts branch of Queen Mary School teaching local students carpentry and house building."(REF 2.) It was also used as a community center. (REF 3.)

In 1962, according to the October 11, 1962 Citizen newspaper, the Lynn Valley Arts Guild purchased the old Methodist Church Building from the School Board for $50. And According to Clare Lakes' "History of LVPPP" it was the top half of the building that was purchased and they "...moved it across the playing field to the west side of Mt. Highway..." The Citizen said further that "to move the top floor of the church to 3355 Mountain Highway cost about $1000." The actual move took place in the spring of 1963.

In 2004 new playground equipment was donated by Home Depot for the north east corner of the new Lynn Valley Elementary School grounds. Charis Kalesnikoff, the school principal, said that when the workers were digging to install the equipment, hunks of concrete were uncovered. She wondered if these were remnants of the old Methodist Church.

The top floor of the old Lynn Valley Methodist Church remains part of the RNB Dance and Theatre Arts building at 3355 Mountain Highway. If you look on the back of the building you can still see the outline of the original Gothic type church windows that lined the sides of the1912 church.

Demolition: Bottom half of the Lynn Valley Methodist Church, in 1963.

Available at the North Vancouver Archives

Reference 1: 1930 Fire Insurance Map.

Reference 2: 1988 District of North Vancouver Heritage Inventory.

Reference 3: 1993 District of North Vancouver Heritage Inventory.

Reference 4: #275 North Vancouver Archives Map.

Reference 5: Clare Lakes' "History of Lynn Valley Parent Participation

Preschool".

Reference 6: October 11, 1962 "Citizen" newspaper.

Reference 7: 1005 "Sacred Sites Tour Booklet," article by Kathleen Larsen.

Photo: North Vancouver Archives Photo(26-19B-1-Draycott Fons 26, taken ca. 1920.)

Sunday, January 3, 2010
Sunday Church Feature
St. Richard's of Norgate

St. Richard's Anglican Church at 1398 West 15th St. in the District of North Vancouver is on the corner of Philips Avenue and West 15th Street. It was the sixth mission of St. John's Anglican Church and started to provide a Sunday School in the new housing development in the Norgate Park area. Sixty families were contacted and the diocese granted a loan of $1,075 to the parish for the lot purchase and construction costs. The church hall cost $2,200 and was dedicated in 1950. The actual St. Richard's Anglican Church cost $47,000 and was dedicated on February 1, 1955, It became a separate mission parish in 1957.


Norgate Park is an area south of Marine Drive, north of , east of the Native Lands, and west of Pemberton Avenue It consisted of mainly one story ranch homes built on cement slabs for veterans from WWII. Some of these veterans brought their war brides from England here to their new home in Canada. Today the area is simply called  Norgate. Except for renovations like making rooms out of the garage areas, most of the homes remain the same. A few two story homes have been built, mainly versions of the 'Vancouver Special".


The original 1950 Sunday school church building was a rectangular hall positioned with the narrow end facing Philips Avenue. It sat at the location of the present St. Richard's. In 1955 to facilitate the building of a new larger church the hall was moved to the east side of the lot and turned to face 15th Street. The building is now called the St. Richard's Church Hall and serves the community as the Acorn Early Education Centre, Norgate. The present church building has its entrance on 15th Street, but is positioned with the narrow end on Philips Avenue.


This church that hummed with the children from 60 families in 1955 no longer has a Sunday School. In fact, the total church congregation on a Sunday morning is about 20. The Korean Stump Presbyterian Church congregation worships in the sanctuary on Sunday afternoons.  St. Richard's Anglican Church is the only Christian church building in the Norgate area, and at 10:00am every Sunday morning the rope is pulled to ring the bell to tell the community the Sunday church service is starting..


The year 2010 may bring an end to the ringing of this bell, since St. Richard's is in the throes of closing.


Photo: Taken 2007 by SW.
Closed: As an Anglican Church in 2011. Congregation welcomed by St.
                Catherine's Anglican Church.

Note: Suzanne Marie Wilson attended this church until its closing. Her
               granddaughter Holly Marie Misner was baptized here in
               September 2007.
Update: A June 10, 2011 North Shore News article reports that the church
               is for sale.
More information: See blog http://www.churchesonsundays.blogspot.com/