Cross St. 0002 - Church - Gale Presbyterian Elmira

• Name	Cross St. 0002 - Church - Gale Presbyterian Elmira
  Born	constructed 1868	2 Cross St., Elmira, Ontario
  Gender	Unknown
  Church	1868
  	constructed
  Died	still standing
  Person ID	I524	Properties
  Last Modified	14 Aug 2011

  
  

• Photos

  Gale Presbyterian Church about 1996 Taken by Rosemary and Gordon Ambrose

  
  

• Notes

  Gale Presbyterian Church - Cross Street Take a short detour down Cross St. to Gale Presbyterian Church.  Built in 1868, this church is named after Rev. Alexander Gale, a professor at Knox College, Toronto, who headed a program in the 1840s to give student ministers a chance to preach.  These students came to the church in Winterbourne, the closest Presbyterian church before this one was built.  The 1868 building was altered considerably in 1906, but care was taken to blend the additions and the old building into a pleasing whole.  The right-hand (north) portion of the building is the original structure.  The front fa?ade was very simple, with a tall gothic-arch central entrance and a small pointed-arch window above. A close look at the brick reveals where the doorway was bricked in and replaced by the round window.  Notice too the three buttresses and four gothic windows in the north wall of the original building.  In 1906, the left hand foyer, the short tower and the annex were added, while the impressive round window replaced the old doorway.  The tower with its flared eaves adds distinction to the new entrance, and its fish scale shingling is echoed in the decorative south gable end.  The gothic windows in the south side tie in with the original ones on the north side.  New memorial windows replaced the old windows in the 1940s when the church was repainted inside and out.  In 1951, a kitchen was built, and in 1970 the portable Sunday school room was added at the rear.1a 1aElmira Three Walking Tours, compiled by Susan Bryant and Bertha Thompson for the Township of Woolwich LACAC (Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee), December, 1985 - submitted by Marion Roes  with permission of the authors 2011 __________________________ As early as 1856, student ministers from Knox College came to Elmira to preach under the guidance of The Rev. Alexander Gale.  The seed that became Gale Presbyterian Church was planted in 1864 by Robert Kenning who donated a 1/4 acre of land at 2 Cross Street.  In 1868, a builder Hiram Martin, and an architect Mr. Gingerich, were selected to build a church at a cost of $450.00.  In 1986 the portable Sunday school classroom was sold and replaced with a $250,000. addition.  The new addition was dedicated in 1987 as the Boyne Christian Education Centre.  The lower half was dedicated as the McCleary Room and the largest classroom on the upper level as the McLean Room.  In 1988 the sanctuary was turned around to accommodate the new narthex and in 1996 a pipe organ was dedicated.  In 2004 the congregation approved a process to begin relocation.2a 2awww.galepresbyterian.com 2011

  
  

• Event Map

  Born - constructed 1868 - 2 Cross St., Elmira, Ontario  = Link to Google Earth