If you can't bring the people to the church, bring the church to the people.
That certainly would apply to three churches whose stories can be found in Port Coquitlam's early history. The following tells of three places of worship that were built around the same time (1909 to 1912) and began their existence at one location, then ended up being moved elsewhere to meet the needs of their followers.
In 1908, St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church was built on Dewdney Trunk Road (now Kingsway), just west of Shaughnessy Street, where today you would find the north end of the Royal Canadian Legion parking lot. Early photos show a sound wooden structure with a steep roof and tall spire. In 1925, the name was changed to Trinity United Church when the Presbyterians, Methodists and Congregationalists united and a decision was made in 1947 to move the church three blocks south to the corner of Shaughnessy and Whyte, where it remained until it was torn down in 1966. The current Trinity United Church was built that same year on the corner of Shaughnessy and Prairie Avenue.
The Baptist Mission was built in 1912 during the area's boom days on Flint and Oxford Street on the city's north side, an area that was expected to develop rapidly with the coming of the Canadian Pacific Railway to Coquitlam. By 1921, the boom had turned to bust and the forlorn church sat empty. The Baptist board decided to relocate the building to the Vancouver neighbourhood of Kerrisdale, 15 miles away, and plans to move were put in place.
A ditch 40-foot-wide ditch and the 12-foot-high Pitt River dike were but two of many obstacles encountered in Port Coquitlam before the church was placed on a barge and towed down the Pitt and Fraser rivers before being beached at the foot of Angus Avenue in Vancouver. After another two-and-a-half-mile mile journey overland, the Kerrisdale Baptist Church opened its doors to a grateful congregation at 2095 W. 43rd Ave. Of the three churches featured, only this one remains standing today, although it's now known as the Fourth Church of Christ, Scientist.
St. Catherine's Church, largely built by voluntary labour, was opened on the city's west side on Dewdney Trunk and Burleigh Avenue. From the start, water seemed to be an issue for St. Catherine's, and would be for the rest of its days and beyond. The day St. Catherine's opened, Nov. 28, 1909, the Coquitlam River overflowed due to heavy rains and salmon could be heard jumping under the building by those inside. After the service, the ladies had to be carried out by the gents through the knee-deep water to dry land. Contrary to what some history books say, the church did not get washed down that same river in the great flood of October 1921 but it was decided by 1931 to re-locate the church closer to its parishioners - and away from that darn river.
On Nov. 3, 1931, the Herculean-task of dragging the building east to the river began, with skids and heavy timbers employed. After two days of toil and sweat, the church was in position to cross but a new problem arose - literally.
At 9:30 p.m., an SOS came to the parson: "River rising rapidly, help needed to save skid timbers." The parson and other men of the parish who came to assist in the darkness of the night floundered around in the wildly rushing current trying to save their church.
The next day, the river was at its peak and the future was in doubt: Would the river win out this time?
As luck would have it, by Sunday, the waters subsided and a dredging machine that had been working near by lent assistance to drag the beleaguered church over to the far bank. The rest of the move to its new location on McAllister Street seemed anti-climactic, with the BC Telephone Company supplying the workers to raise the 50 or more wires to let the church pass under - free of charge.
The old church, moved across the street from city hall, was finally replaced by a new modern structure in 1963. In an ironic twist of fate, this church had to be demolished itself in 1999 when the foundation was found to be unstable due to being built over the old creek-bed of the east leg of the Coquitlam River, which meandered through the downtown area many years before.
Maybe some things are just meant to be, or not.
The travels of these three churches over the sometimes rocky roads and dangerous shoals of life to continue serving their community showed a great determination - come hell or high water.
Note: A special thank you to local historian Niall Williams for his informative blog on the Baptist Church history.
Your History is a column in which, once a month, representatives of the Tri-Cities' three heritage groups writes about local history. Bryan Ness is a member of the Port Coquitlam Heritage and Cultural Society.
