Saint Patrick's Church in Fergusons Falls

Monday was nice, semi nice anyway, and nice enough for a little drive. My vocabulary is nice, nice, nice.

It was a bit of a destination drive. We were heading to a maple sugar place about 20 minutes away. We weren't planning on staying for the food this time. It was just for the drive and to purchase  maple syrup. We have been syrup-less for a few weeks as a result of making french toast on Sunday mornings.

The best laid plans, eh? They are closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. I should have guessed, at least about Monday. It's a rural thing. Even in our growing town, smaller stores and restaurants tend to remain closed after the weekend. I had thought of the possibility but then forgot about it, which is something that I am prone to do.

While there, we checked out an old church that we had always passed by: Saint Patrick's in Fergusons Falls. 

According to this link, the building dates to 1836 but was moved to this site in 1838. A plaque by the cemetery gives 1856 as the date of inception, but that seems to have been the year that it was consecrated. Now, there is only one memorial service every year – on the second Sunday of July. However, it may have more to do with the cemetery than the church.

The graveyard, of course, has some very old headstones. I would have taken more photos, but most of the older markers were illegible, or mostly so.

Of course, I couldn't resist making some photos of bits of the graveyard.

From the link: there's also more information there than I am posting if you are interested.

St. Patrick’s Church, one of the oldest mission churches in Ontario, stands on the summit of a hill overlooking the Mississippi River in Ferguson’s Falls. If this small edifice could speak, it would tell of the changes that have taken place in the district for the past 112 years. In 1820 the first settlers came to Ferguson’s Falls. At that time they had to walk through the woods to Perth to worship. It was usually a two day trip, going in one day and returning the next day. When any member of the community died, their remains were carried into Perth and buried in the old cemetery on the banks of the Tay River.

There was no church at that time and the first evidence of a priest coming was in 1820 when Father LaMothe came from Quebec. He came at certain times during the year to those scattered throughout the county and held Mass in private homes. He continued these visits until 1823 when he was replaced by Father Sweeney who did the missionary work in the territory. Towards the end of 1823 Rev. Father McDonald came as the first resident pastor and for 15 years the priest labored. He erected a frame church in Perth and in the outlying districts “stations” were erected and services were held at suitable times throughout the year. The next priest to be sent to Perth was Rev. Hugh McDonagh in 1836(?). During his pastorate the present church at Ferguson’s Falls was erected on account of the twenty miles or territory included in the parish at that time and the ever increasing congregation, it was decided that provision would have to be made to take care of the spiritual wants of the people who lived in the outlying portions of the parish and who had been required to make such long and tedious journeys to Perth to attend Mass. Accordingly, in 1836, a church was built at Ferguson’s Falls. Logs used to make the church were cut on the farm owned by a Mr. Scantlan.

Two years after it was built it was moved to the present site. After it was placed on its permanent foundation the present vestry was added. It was named St. Patrick’s Church in honor of the patron saint of Ireland.

Note: If you search for it online, you will find all of Fergusons Falls, Ferguson Falls, and Ferguson's Falls. The sign at the church cemetery used the apostrophe as does the website of the township in which it is located – Drummond/North Elmsley. Google and its map app have it with the s, sans apostrophe, while Mapcarta and others drop the s entirely and have it as Ferguson Falls. I have chosen to write Fergusons, which I am guessing is how most locals would think of it and how most people of years past would probably have written the name. I wonder how it was presented on the very first maps and documents.