Sunday service: 11:00 am, all year.

With the discovery of copper in Bruce Mines in 1846 a number of people came from Cornwall, England to work in the mines. Many of these were Wesleyan Methodists and brought with them a strong Christian faith and Methodist traditions.

For a time the Methodists, Anglicans and Presbyterians worshipped in the Union Church which stood about where Lot 72 on the eastern portion of Taylor Street is now. In 1884 the Anglicans built their own church at Lot 95 on the north side of Taylor Street. In 1894 the Presbyterians built their own church-on-the-rock which is now the Bruce Mines Museum. Some time later the Wesleyan Methodists purchased an old building which had been used by the Primitive Methodists. It stood on the site of the present United Church property and had been abandoned when the Methodists in Canada amalgamated. This building had been used for fish storage previous to that purchase.

As the town prospered and grew, The Rev. A. Wall, minister at the time, provided inspiration and leadership for the construction of a larger and better church building. Plans for the building were donated by Lady Eaton who, when it was completed, donated the pews as well. Much of the work was volunteered, and the total cost was $7,000.00

The stones used in the construction of the building had been hand-chiseled, and were salvaged from the old mine buildings in the east end of town. Some of the stones were of pudding stone (Jasper conglomerate) which is found only in Southern Algoma. The interior is of local birch, which was provided and installed by Mr. George Allyn who operated a sawmill and lumber business at that time in town. The windows are of cathedral glass, in rich colours. A unique feature is the folding doors at the back of the sanctuary, opening into areas which, with the sanctuary, originally provided a total seating capacity of 1,000. These extra areas are now used for Sunday school rooms, while nursery and kindergarten classes are held in the basement.

The building was opened and dedicated on February 4th, 1906. The guest speaker was The Rev. E.I. Hart, chairman of the district. Records show that about 2,000 persons attended the three services held on that joyous day, despite the severe winter storm.

To mark the 50th anniversary of the United Church of Canada the lovely old pump organ, which had been donated by Mr. R.E. Miller in 1905, was cleaned and brought to the front of the sanctuary. Two cabinets were made to hold the archives and the memorial books. A glass case was built to hold one of the original communion sets and a gold watch which had been presented to Mrs. Kezia Peterson for her many years of service as the church organist.

One of the special attractions in the sanctuary is the ornately hand-carved "The Lord’s Prayer", framed on a dark background. It was made by Mr. C. Smedley as a wedding gift for his daughter’s wedding to Mr. Dobie in 1898. She later placed it in the church.

In 1917 the Presbyterian congregation walked in a body from their church-on-the-rock to the Methodist Church and were received with the singing of hymns, thus marking the union of the two congregations some eight years before the Act of Union 1925. At this time also the Cloudslee congregation became part of the Charge. In June 1938 there was a re-alignment in Algoma Presbytery; Cloudslee became part of the Rydal Bank Charge, and Desbarats became part of the Bruce Mines Charge.

In 1980, as a 75th Anniversary project, the renovation of the basement area was undertaken. This project was headed by Mr. I.S. Watkinson, and was completed by volunteer labour. The result was a beautiful Anniversary Room, with modern kitchen, washrooms, and basement entrance.

Five years later, the 80th Anniversary project was to improve the sanctuary and to install a new electric organ. New lighting fixtures were dedicated in memory of Mr. Watkinson. Many other memorials have added to the beauty and usefulness of the church over the years. Among these is the modern sound system installed from memorial funds. Mrs. Sinclair donated the memorial oak doors for the front entrance.

In 1962 the three ladies’ groups, Ladies’ Aid, Women’s Auxiliary, and the Women’s Missionary Society were united to from the United Church Women. This group has been quite active in the work of the church and has completed many projects. Two annual events for this group are the making of turkey pies in the Fall, and the Strawberry Social in July.

Ministers who have labored in this Charge over the years include the following: Rev. D.B. McLennan (Presbyterian, 1890-1904), Rev A.A. Wall (1903-07), Rev. C.N. MacKenzie (1905-11, Presbyterian), Rev. John Coulter (1908-12), Rev. A.D. Watson (1911-19, Presbyterian), Rev. Alfred Atton (1916-17), Rev J.C. Johnston (1917-21), Rev. J.F. Hickson (1921-23), Rev. T.W.F.G. Andrews (1923-25), Rev J.H. Martin (1925-31), Rev H.E. Burnside (1931-35), Rev Jos. Harrower (1935-40), Rev R. Dyke (1940-43, 1945-48, Chaplain in the Armed Forces 1943-45), Rev. Joseph Dudgeon (1943-45), Rev. Charles L. Woolley (1948-50), Rev. Fred Starkey (1950-52), Rev. Harry M. Denning (1953-55), Rev. Alfred McAlister (1955-58), Rev. Ralph Johnston (1958-60), Rev. Thomas Redpath (1960-63), Rev. E.S. Stephens (1963-70), Rev. W. Fred Jewell (1970-72), Rev. George Cardy (1972-76), Rev. Allan Miller (1977-80), Rev. James C. Gill ((1980-84), Rev. Susan Cameron (1984-91), Rev. Len Ferber (1991-99), Rev. Elaine Barber (2000-03) and Rev. Janet Schenell (2003 - present)

The congregation of Bruce Mines United Church faces the future with confidence and optimism. The beautiful church building with its tall spire stands as a memorial to those pioneers who faith, toil and devotion raised it to the Glory of God and for the use of the community in its continuing devotion.

In the early 1990’s changes began to be made to make the church more accessible to people with some physical handicaps. Some steps were removed at the front of the sanctuary and were replaced with a long gradual ramp and handrail. That work was done by members of the congregation, but mostly Mitch Osborne and Maxie Foster (whom we affectionately named M&M construction because they did so much around the church).

Beginning in November, 1991, and continuing every November for 17 years, a pageant that tells the true meaning of the Christmas story, took place from this church. It was a guided walk from the church to outside and through stations in the park, where the volunteer actors tried to make you feel what it would have been like to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem for Jesus birth. Volunteers from all the surrounding communities took part and singers from everywhere came together to form a wonderful choir. The pageant was named Journey of Love – The Holy Walk. This pageant was loved by members and non church- goers alike and people came every year, from near and from many miles away.

In 2005, the 100th Anniversary of the church was celebrated. As the special project, the stained glass windows were all refurbished The original stained glass was cleaned and repaired and then encased in thermal units. The windows can be opened to provide ventilation.

In 2009, with the assistance of a Trillium grant, a major insulation project was completed and a wider door was installed at the top of the ramp coming into the sanctuary to accommodate larger wheelchairs or other devices.

In early 2010, the bathrooms were enlarged and completely remodelled, making both of them accessible for everyone. Now the church is physically accessible for all – although one would have to go outside from the sanctuary and around to the lower level entrance to get to the bathroom. It is not feasible to put an elevator or chairlift in this building.

For several years now, this church has provided space for the food bank to provide their services. They use the anniversary room to serve clients and they have storage space and cupboards behind the kitchen.

As in most other churches, our membership is down and fundraising is a necessary part of being able to keep our church open and viable. One of our major projects is THE ANNUAL TURKEY PIE BAKE which takes place at the end of October. It started in Margaret Black’s kitchen in 1986 as a test making about 60 pies and has grown to almost 2,000 pies each year. This is an outreach event as well – we always have more than 40 volunteers to help us. Many are members of the community who ask us to let them know when we need them, and they are willing to do whatever needs doing. The task is huge but laughter and giggles can be heard for the entire time.

We also have a YARD SALE on the 2nd Saturday in June, to help recycle goods instead of sending to the landfill. We try to send the leftovers to appropriate destinations such as the ReStore or to someone else who is having a yard sale.

MISSION STATEMENT OF BRUCE MINES UNITED CHURCH

The purpose of the Bruce Mines United Church is to celebrate God’s Word with joy, to love one another, to welcome community involvement and to respect all of God’s creations.