St. Matthew’s Presbyterian Church is one of the oldest landmarks in our town. It is the only remaining original church in Grand Falls-Windsor still standing. The town council has plans to designate the building a heritage structure. It was designed by William Scott, the A.N.D. Company's vice-president and general manager. In 1910 Horwood Lumber Company constructed it at a cost of $3000. Even though the first church wasn’t built until 1910, the first service was conducted by A. U. Wood in the summer of 1905 in the mill manager's house that was located on the present-day Memorial Grounds just behind our school. It was the first service of any denomination held in our town. The first resident minister was the Reverend William MacPherson.
One hundred years after the first service, the small congregation of St.
Matthew’s remains active. The congregation provides financial support to the
Presbyterian Church in Canada, as well as the Grand Falls-Windsor / Bishops Falls
Community Food Bank and the Interfaith Cemetery Committee. Most recent
donations were made to a campaign of the national body to combat HIV/AIDS in
Africa. Members of the church’s women’s group, The Thistle Club, are involved
each year in World Day of Prayer and Fellowship of the Least Coin services.
Presently, St. Matthew's has no resident minister. However, Reverend Ian Wishart comes from St. John’s once every three weeks to conduct services. In the church they have four chairs on the altar. Two of the chairs are really big and the others are smaller. I sat in one of the big chairs. It has a basement where there are tables and chairs, and a serving place with a kitchen. That's where they have their special celebrations. I would like to thank Mrs. Sheila Baird and her daughter for showing my four classmates and me the whole church, except the bell tower. It was too dangerous for us to go up to the bell tower.
Christian Howell (2004-2005)