cktimes.ca Archives for Cultural Musings on Chatham-Kent
Cultural Musings on Chatham-Kent
PARK STREET CHURCH LIVES ON IN "MEMORIES"
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Although it has been said that "life is a casting off", I still have difficulty coming to terms with the reality of that philosophy. In the last ten years we have lost so many things within Chatham-Kent and although some would argue that this is simply a cold, hard fact of progress and change, I cannot but help feel a profound sense of loss and sadness.On October 22, 2006, after 164 years of service, Park Street United Church closed its doors for the last time. Add the loss of this historic edifice to all the others over the years and it conjures up an image of a community at loose ends aimlessly stumbling about into an uncertain future with fewer and fewer touchstones from the past to safely guide the way.
In a last ditch effort to visually capture one of the historic touchstones of Chatham's past, a committee at Park Street United Church (Agnes Clark, Judythe Cornell, Coleen Hasson, Edwinna Rawlings and Barbara Rayment) compiled a booklet entitled "Memories – Celebrating The 164 Year Journey of Park Street United Church". Full of fascinating facts and wonderful images, it is a small book well worth possessing and, as I am going to do with you, sharing.
The present structure, built in 1871, was erected to replace its predecessor (the Wesleyan Methodist Church on King Street East) which had become too small for the growing congregation.
When the present church opened in 1871 it was described as a Gothic structure of red brick with a magnificent slated spire. Unfortunately, this spire was unceremoniously ripped from the structure in 1906 when a devastating tornado ripped through Chatham.
The building was designed to seat over one thousand people, had a Gothic finished ceiling, with the front of the galleries painted white. The pews, communion rail, pulpit, platform and the wainscoting were lovingly and painstakingly crafted out of chestnut wood, which was left in its natural state.
The pews were cushioned in red and once the building was completed these lovely pews were "let out" to parishioners. The old King Street church had been, for many years, too small for families to secure a big enough pew to seat their entire family. The construction of the new church on the corner of Dufferin and Park allowed such a luxury and, according to church records, there was "a general rush" on these pews and they were all ́let outî in a short period of time.
An extremely interesting as well as beautiful feature of the church that many people may not be aware of are the wonderful stain glass "memorial windows" that have over the years been donated to the church in order to memorialize family members. They are finely crafted, full of rich colour and wonderfully detailed. These windows, along with the rich wooden and brick architectural details of the exterior and the interior, create a reverential atmosphere that simply cannot be replicated in a modern place of worship. It bespeaks of a time, a place and an attitude that has, unfortunately, been lost over the years.
Meticulous in its recognition of "the movers and shakers" of Park Street United Church over its long history (no easy task to be sure) it has pictures of all its ministers including such notables as Rev. Edwin Pearson (father of Lester B.), the controversial Rev. Russell Horsburg and of course the more recent ones such as Ross Williams, Ron Barnum, the Jensens and Rev. C. Marwood.
Music in one form or another has played a significant role in the very personality of Park Street United Church and this small but concise booklet pays due attention to the organists and choir directors who filled the church with the sweet sound of music through the years. Beginning with Thomas Holmes who served as choir master for an unbelievable thirty years (1855 to 1866), it outlines such notables as the Cummings Family who began ́the new era of music at Park Streetî (1911-1941) and concludes with such ́modernî notables as the Carscallens, Ron Kingham, William Quartel, John Postma and Sharon Stepniak.
As one turns the pages of this booklet you cannot but help get wrapped up in the wonderful, heart-warming memories of so many people so lovingly talking about their church that once was and is no more. Their comments are full of laughter, remembrances, accomplishments, friendships and, if one is observant enough to read between the lines, a tear or two.
The Park Street Memories book sums up what a place of worship is all about and while it is very true it is the people and not the structure that makes a church (or any organization for that matter) I do not think that anyone can deny that a structure, especially one with as much history and presence as Park Street had, plays a significant and integral role in the overall essence of the entity.
I sympathize with the people of Park Street United Church as it is indeed a loss that I am sure that is felt by every member of the congregation in a manner that must be comparable to a death of a loved one. I know that Lisa and I took it very personally when Chatham Collegiate Institute was closed "on our watch".
However, it is also a loss for everyone within Chatham Kent. It is one more loss of an historic structure that we cannot afford to lose. Historic structures whether they are homes, schools, churches or any public building serve to remind us of who we as a community were and what we could be in the future. The loss of any of these diminishes us as a community. In this case the line from John Donne's poem that states "do not ask for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee" seems particularly appropriate.
I would imagine that copies of MEMORIES are still available by contacting St. Andrew's United Church (352-0010).
Next week, we will look at the heroic efforts of Brian Chute and his family, who have purchased the former Park Street Church, and are now in the throws of transforming it into its next reincarnation.
Jim and Lisa Gilbert are local, national and international award winning educators and historians.
