The Knox United Church, began as Knox Presbyterian Church in Scarborough, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in a wood-frame church built in 1848, the result of the Church of Scotland disruption, that led to the formation of the Presbyterian Church of Canada in Connection with the

Free Church of Scotland Free Church of Scotland may refer to: * Free Church of Scotland (1843–1900), seceded in 1843 from the Church of Scotland. The majority merged in 1900 into the United Free Church of Scotland; historical * Free Church of Scotland (since 1900), rema ...

. Elder William Clarke, Sr., was one of the group who withdrew from the "Auld Kirk" at the

Synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''wikt:synod, synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin ...

Meeting held in Kingston, Canada West in July, 1844; his Minister, Rev. James George, and much of the ''Presbyterian Church at Scarborough in Connection with the Church of Scotland'' (now St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Scarborough located north of

Thomson Memorial Park Thomson Memorial Park is a midsize park at 1005 Brimley Road in the Scarborough district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the site of the Scarborough Historical Museum and includes historical houses from the 1790s that once belonged to the fou ...

) remained. The original Knox Congregation (named after Scottish Church reformer

John Knox John Knox ( gd, Iain Cnocc) (born – 24 November 1572) was a Scottish minister, Reformed theologian, and writer who was a leader of the country's Reformation. He was the founder of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Born in Giffordgat ...

) met first with another congregation located in

York Mills York Mills is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is centred around Yonge Street and York Mills Road located in the district of North York. In 2010, it encompassed the fourth and seventh most affluent postal codes in Canada. It is re ...

, until settling in the developing Scarborough Township village of Agincourt. 40 local residents became the first communicants of Knox Presbyterian Church, originally known as "Knox's Church Scarboro". In 1853, it became the centre of the "Scarborough Township Pastoral Charge", along with Melville (formed 1851) in West Hill, Zion Church, Cedar Grove (formed 1855), in

Markham Township Markham () is a city in the Regional Municipality of York, Ontario, Canada. It is approximately northeast of Downtown Toronto. In the 2021 Census, Markham had a population of 338,503, which ranked it the largest in York Region, fourth largest ...

, Chalmers Church, York Town Line (1863–1890), and other occasional preaching points. By 1883, Knox Church had grown to become a single-point charge. With a growing membership, the current brick church was built in 1872. This church still stands at the corner of Sheppard Avenue East and Midland Avenue, surrounded by a large cemetery containing many early settlers, and a number of prominent Church leaders. In 1925, this Presbyterian congregation voted 136–106 to be part of the new United Church of Canada. A number of members left to form a "Continuing" Knox Presbyterian Church, now located nearby at 4156 Sheppard Avenue East. The Christian Education Centre was added in the 1950s.

External links

Knox United Church Website

References

{{Commons United Church of Canada churches in Toronto Buildings and structures in Scarborough, Ontario 19th-century Presbyterian church buildings in Canada Gothic Revival architecture in Toronto Churches completed in 1848 Churches completed in 1872 Gothic Revival church buildings in Canada 19th-century United Church of Canada church buildings

See also

External links

References