St Brigid's was a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

located in the

Lower Town Lower Town (also spelled "Lowertown" (french: la Basse-Ville) is a neighbourhood in Rideau-Vanier Ward in central Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, to the east of downtown. It is the oldest part of the city. It is bounded by Rideau Street to the south, ...

neighbourhood of

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

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. It was built to serve the English-speaking, Catholic population of the area. The church's closing was announced in 2006, and it was sold in 2007 and converted into an

Irish-Canadian ga, Gael-Cheanadaigh , image = Irish_Canadian_population_by_province.svg , image_caption = Irish Canadians as percent of population by province/territory , population = 4,627,00013.4% of the Canadian population (2016) , po ...

heritage centre. In 2022, it became the focus of a rent dispute involving The United People of Canada.

History

Until the opening of St Brigid's, this community, largely of Irish heritage, had formed part of the parish of Notre-Dame, the Cathedral of Ottawa. By 1870, the Irish percentage of the population had declined relative to that of the French Canadian. As a consequence, the Irish played an ever-diminishing role in the life and management of Notre-Dame. Discussions to establish a distinct

anglophone Speakers of English are also known as Anglophones, and the countries where English is natively spoken by the majority of the population are termed the ''Anglosphere''. Over two billion people speak English , making English the largest language ...

parish and church for Lower Town began in March 1888. A committee of parishioners from Notre-Dame Cathedral held meetings with the Archbishop of Ottawa, the Most Rev.

Joseph-Thomas Duhamel Joseph-Thomas Duhamel (6 November 1841 – 5 June 1909) was a Canadian Roman Catholic priest and Archbishop of Ottawa. Born in Contrecœur, Lower Canada, he was educated at St. Joseph's College, Ottawa, and ordained in 1863. He became Bis ...

. It was agreed to create a new parish; a site for the church chosen; and by May 3, 1888, James R. Bowes had been chosen as architect. The plans called for a substantial structure at the corner of St Patrick and Cumberland Streets. Built in the

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to ...

style (generally called Norman at that time), the principal façade has three heavy round headed portals and paired towers of unequal height and detail. The taller (eastern) tower is capped with a stylized bishop's

mitre The mitre (Commonwealth English) (; Greek: μίτρα, "headband" or "turban") or miter (American English; see spelling differences), is a type of headgear now known as the traditional, ceremonial headdress of bishops and certain abbots in ...

placing the church and its Irish parishioners squarely in the

Ultramontanist Ultramontanism is a clerical political conception within the Catholic Church that places strong emphasis on the prerogatives and powers of the Pope. It contrasts with Gallicanism, the belief that popular civil authority—often represented by th ...

tradition of the Catholic Church. Work began on St Brigid's in 1889 and the Blessing of the completed Church took place on August 3, 1890. In May 2006, Archbishop Marcel Gervais announced that the church would be closed, as the shrinking congregation did not justify the several hundred thousand dollars in needed repairs. The parishioners objected vehemently to this and even took the archdiocese to court to keep it open, both unsuccessfully. One condition of the sale was that the building could not be used as a Catholic church, either by the buyers or their successors. In 2007, St. Brigid's Catholic Church was put up for sale. The deconsecrated building was purchased by four investors in the fall of 2007 for $450,000. Patrick McDonald, one of the investors, renovated the building. It has been turned into Saint Brigid's Centre for the Arts, an

heritage centre and social venue hosting art exhibitions, plays, and concerts.

Non-profit organisation A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

The United People of Canada occupied and started the process purchasing Saint Brigid's Church in July 2022, and converted it into what it calls an "embassy". The conditional offer to buy the church subsequently fell though. After accumulating $10,000 of rent arrears and failing to provide proof of liability insurance, TUPOC was served an eviction notice on August 17, 2022 with bailiffs changing the locks on the 18th. On September 23, 2022, the

Ontario Superior Court of Justice The Superior Court of Justice (French: ''Cour supérieure de justice'') is a superior court in Ontario. The Court sits in 52 locations across the province, including 17 Family Court locations, and consists of over 300 federally appointed judges. ...

ruled that TUPOC had materially breached the sale agreement by failing to make required payments despite two extensions, granted the eviction application, and awarded $53,000 in damages to the owners. Director William Komer said that TUPOC would appeal, but would vacate the church in the meantime.

References

*''Ottawa: A Guide to Heritage Structures'', Ottawa Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee *''Exploring Ottawa'', Harold Kalman and John Roaf *''Capital Walks'', Katharine Fletcher *''Heritage Ottawa Newsletter'', “J. Bowes & Son, Architects, Ottawa: A Forgotten Legacy”, Elizabeth Krug *"The artful rebirth of St. Brigid's". Maria Cook, ''The Ottawa Citizen.'' Wednesday, April 2, 2008

External links

Ontario Heritage Trust St. Brigid's Church (City of Ottawa) - 1889-90

Saint Brigid's Church historicplaces.ca
{{coord, 45.431363, N, 75.690608, W, region:CA-ON_type:landmark, display=title Roman Catholic churches in Ottawa Designated heritage properties in Ottawa Former Roman Catholic church buildings Arts centres in Canada Former churches in Canada Canada convoy protest

History

See also

References

External links