Essex United Church to close in October due to shrinking congregation
A church that has been a landmark in downtown Essex for over 100 years will be closing its doors this October.
Ironically, the last service on Oct. 20 will mark the 150th anniversary of the Essex United Church.
"It's sad. We have contributed a lot to the community," said Jim Hatt, who served as pastor from 2014 to 2019.
Rev. Darrow Woods of the Harrow United Church is currently serving as a part-time pastor for the Essex church to oversee its final days.
Woods said the congregation had about 50 members before the pandemic but since then it has dwindled to only a couple dozen and they are getting too old to attend.
"Covid's been a big thing for a lot of our local churches. People got out of the habit of going," said Woods.
Essex United Church sits on Talbot Street in Essex. (Dale Molnar/CBC)
He said younger people are also finding other ways to spend their Sundays.
"There's this thing in my pocket where I can send texts all day. That seems to be the younger generation's way of connecting," said Woods.
The church also needs some expensive work to repair the peeling paint on the ceiling.
A stained glass window in Essex United Church. (Dale Molnar/CBC)
The current building dates back to 1908 but it began as Grace Methodist Church in 1874.
"It's been a major organization in Essex from the early Methodist Church here staring in 1874 right through to today," said Brian Sweetman, 66, a life-long member of the church who wrote a history of the church for its 100th anniversary.
"The first service happened...in a wagon shop located downtown in Essex," he recounts. "From that congregation, more people got interested in coming to Essex as a town as it was getting founded and also attending church."
Sweetman said the first building opened in 1876 on the site where the current post office is located. That building was damaged by a dynamite explosion at the train station in 1907, so the congregation decided to rebuild a new church on the current site on Talbot Street in 1908.
"It only took them a year to build it," said Hatt.
The Methodist Church amalgamated with part of the Presbyterian Church and the Congregational Union of Canada in 1925 to form the United Church of Canada which grew the population of the congregation. A fire nearly destroyed the church in 1976.
Essex United Church started out as the Grace Methodist Church in Essex in 1876, where the current post office is. (Essex United Church 100th Anniversary book)
Woods said the Antler River Watershed Regional Council, which oversees the property, has plans for the building and those have not been revealed.
Woods would like to see the building used by the community.
"It's a resource to the community. There are groups that meet here. We're hoping that will continue. That's not clear yet," said Woods.
Hatt said the food bank that was operating of the church has moved to the arena.
A special service and celebration for the community will be held at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 19. Then the church will hold its last regular service on Oct. 20, where the site will be decommissioned and a time capsule will be opened.
The town is currently going through the process of giving the building an historic designation. A video is being produced to preserve the history of the church.
