Deconsecrated and sold in 1982, this former church has since been occupied by architects' offices.
Photo credit: Paul Trépanier
In 1955, a new church was built to replace “Old St. Bede's”, the first Anglican place of worship built in Rouyn in the spring of 1926. For nearly half a century, until the mid-1970s, St. Bede's occupied a central place in the Protestant institutional life of Rouyn-Noranda.
Here you can see the first wooden church just before it was demolished to make way for the modern building that stands today. In the background are City Hall and the George Loosemore Protestant school, which has since been demolished.
Photo taken from Facebook
Compare the building you see here with the photo of the old St. Bede's Church as it was when it was built in 1955.
Apart from the removal of the bell tower and the change in window designs, the building is still completely recognizable!
Photo taken from the church's commemorative book marking the parish's 60th anniversary
Originally, a presbytery adjacent to the church was to be built. Due to lack of funds, it never made it past the drawing board.
Starting in 1947, the pastors lived in the Glenwood area, at 199 rue Taschereau Est.
Photo credit: BAnQ
The site of the former St. Bede's Church is a reminder of the rapid establishment of the Church of England in Abitibi-Témiscamingue. It was the second Anglican place of worship founded in the region, following closely on the heels of the one in Ville-Marie, which opened in 1899 and attested to the pioneers' desire to quickly establish religious institutions in a still-young territory.
- 1955 Construction of the church
- 1956 Consecration of the church
- 1982 Desecration and sale