Town of Georgina
Susan Sibbald Fights to Have a Church
By Jeanne Hopkins
When Susan Sibbald had settled in the area, one of her priorities was to build a church. She enlisted the aid of neighbour, John Mills Jackson and donated 66 acres of land on the lakeshore for a church and cemetery. Five more acres were donated by neighbour John Comer. A subscription was begun: Susan Sibbald donated 50 pounds sterling, William Bourchier contributed a raft of lumber.
In 1835, the Bouchiers, Jacksons, Massingtons and Sibbalds petitioned Lt. Gov. John Colborne for land for a school, church and burial ground. A school house was built by 1837.
The plea for permission to build a church was a long struggle; the Church of England hierarchy being slow to respond. The Bishop of Québec offered no assistance and the Anglican Church of Canada finally donated 25 pounds. Other monies and materials were collected from neighbours and friends and relatives living in Canada and England.
Thomas Mossington built a wooden model of the church, then oversaw its construction. The original church stood just north of the present church. Construction began on May 25, 1838. The first incumbent was Rev. John Gibson (1801-1852) who came from England in 1839. The Gibdons stayed with the Sibbalds at the Eildon Hall until a manse could be built. The first services were held in the drawing room of Eildon Hall. When the new church was dedicated on August 26, 1839, only the walls were up; there were no pews, or altar. The name St. George's, had been suggested by Susan Sibbald for the warrior, St. George, who she greatly admired.
A supporter of the church the Simcoe family, who had been good friends of the Sibbalds in England. John Graves Simcoe had served as Upper Canada's first Lt. Gov. in 1793. Elizabeth Simcoe was an accomplished painter and artist. The daughters were also into designing and making stained glass windows. They created a window for the church - featuring seven crosses, one for each Simcoe sister. The window was shipped across the ocean to Georgina in pieces. After reconstruction, the window was placed in the little wooden church. And, when a more permanent stone church was built, the window was installed over the altar.
Now, the grounds and cemetery were being developed. Cedar hedges, maple and pine trees were planed by Thomas Subbald, who had a passion for cedar hedges. In 1857, children brought seedlings from the bush in their pinafores for the hedge.
When Susan Sibbald died on July 8, 1866, her sons wanted to build a larger, more permanent church in her memory. So there would be no disruption in services, the little wooden church was placed on rollers (probably tree trunks) and wheeled to a new site, closer to the lake.
Stone for the church was shipped across the lake on scows from a quarry near Barrie. The stones were then transported by wagon along the lakeshore road from Jackson's Point.
The new church, built under the supervision of Thomas Sibbald, opened in 1877. Each day "at precisely eight bells", the Caption issued rum rations to toast the Queen's health, then work began. Thomas carefully monitored the stone cutting and laying, to ensure no iron deposits or imperfections escaped his eye; one did and can be seen on the west wall "displaying a rusty stain".
Over the next few years, the interior of the church was worked on, the Simcoe window was installed, and wood was carved for the pulpit and prayer desk (butternut), and Holy table and Hymn board (oak). Much of the carving was done by Rev. George Everest who conducted services at St. George's from 1901 until 1908.
The Second World War greatly diminished the church's congregation. After the war, it was decided to hold services at St. George's only during the summer months. Today, Sunday morning services, weddings and other celebrations are held in the "Sibbald Memorial Church" each July and August.
Source: Georgina Advocate - Our History December 1992. Reproduced with permission