The Rockingham Church
This is the interior of the Rockingham Church which I showed from the outside yesterday. To capture the light through the windows properly, I did this as an HDR using Lightroom's HDR feature. While I could have achieved almost the same result through a little pushing of a single, well executed RAW image, the HDR version just seemed to be a little bit better in this case.
© Anvilcloud Photography
The following tidbits are excerpted from the Pembroke Library
The Rockingham Church, formerly known as St. Leonard’s Anglican Church, was built in 1875, when the hamlet of Rockingham was a thriving community. Essentially abandoned 60 years ago, the church’s simple grace and imposing location high on a slope overlooking the village attract many visitors each year. A post and beam structure, the building is a unique survivor of its kind in Renfrew County and one of the oldest remaining buildings in the area. In 1999, the Townships of Brudenell, Lyndoch & Raglan designated the church a heritage site under the Ontario Heritage Act.
Evidence for the date of construction of the Rockingham Church is conflicting, but The Renfrew Mercury, May 28, 1875, reported:
New Church at Rockingham
The Protestant settlers at Rockingham have, with the assistance of a few kind friends, lately erected a commodious place of worship for the settlement ...
In 1882, the Anglican Mission Board granted $400 to the Bishop of Ontario toward the support of a missionary to be stationed at Rockingham, where there was “a genial society of church members, Mr. Watson and family being among them.” The Rev. A.W. MacKay arrived in early 1882 to take up the position. The Church Warden’s Accounts for the same year record expenses of $391.14 to improve the church with the addition of a porch, communion rail, and organ, most likely to complete it for use as an Anglican mission; at that time it was named St. Leonard’s Church. A stove was added in 1885, and a belfry and bell in 1891.
In 1975 and 1976, a group under the name Madawaska Association for Developmental Ecology (M.A.D.E.) repaired the back wall, reshingled the roof and arranged for the return of the pews. Apart from the visits of tourists, history buffs and artists, the church stood empty and decaying until 1995, when the Friends of the Rockingham Church formed to undertake the present rehabilitation of the building.
Architecture of the Rockingham Church
The church is constructed in conventional post and beam style, with board and batten siding of locally cut pine. The siding is for the most part the original wood, installed in 1875. The old shingles removed in 1974-75 were of cedar—it is hard to believe they could have been original after 100 years, but there is no record in the Church Warden’s accounts that shows earlier repairs or replacement.
The elegant curved pews are original to the Rockingham Church. They were removed to the Quadeville Pentecostal Church in the 1940s and returned in the mid-1970s. The original altar rail and pulpit remain, although the font was moved to the Union Church at Barry’s Bay.
The repairs undertaken in 1999 and 2000 uncovered extensive rot to the post and beam structure within the walls and at the ground, which had caused the increasing sag in the walls and roof. Siding boards were removed and numbered to allow repair and/or replacement of the 8” x 8” beams without disturbing the interior panelling. Rafter ends, too, were rotting where they sat on the wall top plates. These were reinforced with new lumber, unsound roof decking was replaced, and the roof was reshingled in new cedar. The steeple was removed for repairs and reshingling. After much debate, copper was chosen for the steeple shingles for its longevity and its appearance. Repairs were completed in July 2000.
The Friends of the Rockingham Church, Inc.
The Friends of the Rockingham Church formed in 1995, in response to the imminent threat of the church’s demolition. The Anglican Diocese of Ottawa, then the owner of the church, was concerned about the building’s deteriorating condition and applied to the municipality for a demolition permit. Local concerned citizens took action, prevailed upon the Diocese to delay and eventually waive the application. The group incorporated in 1997 and was designated a charitable organization by Revenue Canada. The purchase of the building was finalized in 1998.
The Friends continue to raise funds for the ongoing maintenance and insurance of the building and to support programs to publicize its historical value. Tax receipts are issued for all donations. Cheques may be made out to:
The Rockingham Church is located at the junction of John Watson Road and the Rockingham Road, in the village of Rockingham. From the east (Killaloe or Eganville), turn off Hwy. 512 at Brudenell onto Renfrew County Road #66 (the Opeongo Line). Turn left onto Renfrew County Road #68 (the Letterkenny Road) and follow the signs to Rockingham. From the west (Combermere), turn off Hwy. 62 onto Hwy. 515. Turn left immediately onto Renfrew County Road #68 (the Rockingham Road) and follow to Rockingham.
The Rockingham Church
This is the interior of the Rockingham Church which I showed from the outside yesterday. To capture the light through the windows properly, I did this as an HDR using Lightroom's HDR feature. While I could have achieved almost the same result through a little pushing of a single, well executed RAW image, the HDR version just seemed to be a little bit better in this case.
© Anvilcloud Photography
The following tidbits are excerpted from the Pembroke Library
The Rockingham Church, formerly known as St. Leonard’s Anglican Church, was built in 1875, when the hamlet of Rockingham was a thriving community. Essentially abandoned 60 years ago, the church’s simple grace and imposing location high on a slope overlooking the village attract many visitors each year. A post and beam structure, the building is a unique survivor of its kind in Renfrew County and one of the oldest remaining buildings in the area. In 1999, the Townships of Brudenell, Lyndoch & Raglan designated the church a heritage site under the Ontario Heritage Act.
Evidence for the date of construction of the Rockingham Church is conflicting, but The Renfrew Mercury, May 28, 1875, reported:
New Church at Rockingham
The Protestant settlers at Rockingham have, with the assistance of a few kind friends, lately erected a commodious place of worship for the settlement ...
In 1882, the Anglican Mission Board granted $400 to the Bishop of Ontario toward the support of a missionary to be stationed at Rockingham, where there was “a genial society of church members, Mr. Watson and family being among them.” The Rev. A.W. MacKay arrived in early 1882 to take up the position. The Church Warden’s Accounts for the same year record expenses of $391.14 to improve the church with the addition of a porch, communion rail, and organ, most likely to complete it for use as an Anglican mission; at that time it was named St. Leonard’s Church. A stove was added in 1885, and a belfry and bell in 1891.
In 1975 and 1976, a group under the name Madawaska Association for Developmental Ecology (M.A.D.E.) repaired the back wall, reshingled the roof and arranged for the return of the pews. Apart from the visits of tourists, history buffs and artists, the church stood empty and decaying until 1995, when the Friends of the Rockingham Church formed to undertake the present rehabilitation of the building.
Architecture of the Rockingham Church
The church is constructed in conventional post and beam style, with board and batten siding of locally cut pine. The siding is for the most part the original wood, installed in 1875. The old shingles removed in 1974-75 were of cedar—it is hard to believe they could have been original after 100 years, but there is no record in the Church Warden’s accounts that shows earlier repairs or replacement.
The elegant curved pews are original to the Rockingham Church. They were removed to the Quadeville Pentecostal Church in the 1940s and returned in the mid-1970s. The original altar rail and pulpit remain, although the font was moved to the Union Church at Barry’s Bay.
The repairs undertaken in 1999 and 2000 uncovered extensive rot to the post and beam structure within the walls and at the ground, which had caused the increasing sag in the walls and roof. Siding boards were removed and numbered to allow repair and/or replacement of the 8” x 8” beams without disturbing the interior panelling. Rafter ends, too, were rotting where they sat on the wall top plates. These were reinforced with new lumber, unsound roof decking was replaced, and the roof was reshingled in new cedar. The steeple was removed for repairs and reshingling. After much debate, copper was chosen for the steeple shingles for its longevity and its appearance. Repairs were completed in July 2000.
The Friends of the Rockingham Church, Inc.
The Friends of the Rockingham Church formed in 1995, in response to the imminent threat of the church’s demolition. The Anglican Diocese of Ottawa, then the owner of the church, was concerned about the building’s deteriorating condition and applied to the municipality for a demolition permit. Local concerned citizens took action, prevailed upon the Diocese to delay and eventually waive the application. The group incorporated in 1997 and was designated a charitable organization by Revenue Canada. The purchase of the building was finalized in 1998.
The Friends continue to raise funds for the ongoing maintenance and insurance of the building and to support programs to publicize its historical value. Tax receipts are issued for all donations. Cheques may be made out to:
The Rockingham Church is located at the junction of John Watson Road and the Rockingham Road, in the village of Rockingham. From the east (Killaloe or Eganville), turn off Hwy. 512 at Brudenell onto Renfrew County Road #66 (the Opeongo Line). Turn left onto Renfrew County Road #68 (the Letterkenny Road) and follow the signs to Rockingham. From the west (Combermere), turn off Hwy. 62 onto Hwy. 515. Turn left immediately onto Renfrew County Road #68 (the Rockingham Road) and follow to Rockingham.