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Our Mission
Staff
Heritage
Locations
HERITAGE
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The Rev. Thomas Ball
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In 1866, the first services of our Church were held in Bracebridge by
The Rev. H. B. Wray of Orillia.
All Anglican parishes in Muskoka were considered to be part of the parish of
St. James' in Orillia. The first church was a log building located on
the site of our present cemetery. Services were held every fourth Sunday.
This building was only used for a few years until they began to
meet in the Orange Hall building on Manitoba Street. At this
time, services were held every second Sunday. In May 1870,
The Rev. Thomas Ball became the first incumbent at Bracebridge. He
arrived from St. James' Cathedral, Toronto, immediately after his ordination
as a Deacon.
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The Rev.
Ball soon raised one
thousand dollars to pay for
a new
church building.
The picturesque,
white-painted, wooden church
(built on the site of our
present parking lot) was
opened on October 6,
1872. It was at this
time, the parish
changed its name to St.
Thomas' in honour of its
first rector and in
appreciation for his
hard labours. On
December 6, 1896, a new
red-bricked church
was opened on our
present site. The property
for this was donated by
Arthur A. Mahaffy, who was
later a member of the
Provincial Legislature and
who subsequently became a
judge in Muskoka. At
first, the church building
lacked a bell tower but in
1904, the tower was erected
and the fifteen
hundred-pound bell was
presented to the church by
Mrs. R. M. Browning in
memory of her husband.
On the site of the first
church, Mrs. Browning also
donated Browning Memorial
Hall. This has now
been replaced by the new
Browning Hall, built in
1993, at the east end of the
church.
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The present
church retains its original
appearance as it was
completed in 1896. The
tower was added in 1903 and
the vestry extended in
1956. The architectural
style is of a modified Gothic
and was designed by Charles J.
Gibson, who also designed
St. John the Baptist Norway
Church, Toronto, the Earl's
Court Public Library, and
Christ Church, Mimico.
An unusual aspect of St.
Thomas' is the exposed wooden
truss system with the large
half-circle arches, resting on
hammer-beam truss wall
brackets, a rarity in
Canada. Also, the
exposed brickwork is of
interest; each wall
consists of two single layers
joined by metal 'headers'
or 'tie pieces' with air
spaces between.
On April 24, 1985, St. Thomas'
was designated a Heritage
Building under By-Law 35-32 of
Part IV of the Ontario
Heritage Act, R.S.O. 1930,
Chapter 337. In 2006,
St. Thomas' received a Built
Heritage Award from the
Muskoka Heritage
Foundation in recognition of
the church having been
maintained in its original
Victorian appearance. We
now celebrate one hundred
forty-one years of St. Thomas'
Anglican Church, Bracebridge! |
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Rectors
of St. Thomas'
Rev.
H.B. Wray
1865
Rev. Thomas Ball
1870 - 1874
Rev.
J.S. Cole
1874
- 1883
Rev. S.E. Knight
1883 - 1884
Rev. E.S. Stubbs
1884
Rev. James Boydell
1885 - 1899
Rev. Canon W.A.J. Burt
1889 - 1909
Rev. F.H. Hincks
1909 - 1919
Rev. F.G. Sherring
1919 - 1928
Rev. J.S. Smedley
1929 - 1940
Rev. R.K. Trowbridge
1940 - 1945
Rev. F.F. Nock
1945 - 1948
Rev. S.M. Craymer
1948 - 1952
Rev. A.J. Thomson
1952 - 1957
Rev. George M. Black
1957 - 1958
Rev. Canon D.N. Mitchell
1958 - 1983
Rev. Canon S.G. Tomes
1983 - 1986
Rev. Canon A.V. (Terry)
Bennett
1987-1994
Rev. Dale Huston
1995 - 1998
Rev. Rosalie Goos
1999 - 2005
Rev. Kelly Baetz
2006 - 2020
Rev. Judie Cooper
2020 -
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