Remember This? First Baptist Church

From the archives of the Sault Ste. Marie Public Library:

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Remember This? First Baptist Church 

First Baptist Church has stood on the corner of March and Albert Streets for over 125 years. 

In 1889, Sault Ste. Marie was expanding and people were moving to the area. 

As families moved in, they found that there were a few churches that were already established but there was no Baptist Church yet.  

So on July 22, 1889, a small group met in Dawson’s Hall. 

It is believed that this hall was located in a building found on the northeast corner of Queen and East Streets. 

By the end of this initial meeting, 15 charter members had signed an agreement to form First Baptist Church in the town of Sault Ste. Marie. 

Some of the original charter members included: Mr. & Mrs. Oscar Olmstead, Mr. & Mrs. William Langtry, Joseph Burley, Duncan Cameron, William McPhee and Mrs. Ada Wright.   

They continued to hold meetings in Dawson’s Hall, adding to their numbers rapidly and by October of 1889 the decision was made to acquire property in order to erect a permanent church building. 

A lot was found on the corner of March and Albert Streets and construction began immediately. 

Three hundred chairs were ordered at a cost of 40 cents each. 

The congregation was able to move into their new church early in 1890 and the cost of the original church building was $3,100. 

This early church showed great faith as they started with 15 members and a short seven months later they had a church building with seating for 300 people!  

As the new church was getting established they enjoyed the leadership of student pastors during their first year of operation. 

Mr. Mills led the church from July 22, 1889 until September 25, 1889. 

Ralph Trotter, another student was the pastor from October 11, 1889 until August 8, 1890.   

By the time the church had reached its first anniversary in 1890 they were ready to call their first pastor. 

Reverend Fred T. Tapscott accepted the call from the church and served as the pastor from August 10, 1890 to May 17, 1891 and then again from 1901-1905.   

A newspaper article from 1895 describes First Baptist Church as “lighted by electricity, bright and airy accommodating about 350 people." 

At this time the cost to light the church and the basement was $3.75 per month!  

Disaster struck the church, a wood-frame building, described as one of the city’s oldest buildings, on February 13, 1933 when a fire started in the church on a Monday morning, just before noon. 

It was brought under control within 45 minutes but not before the majority of the interior of the church was destroyed. 

Damage was estimated at between $10,000 and $12,000, although the final cost may have been much higher. 

The original pipe organ, valued at $3,000 and what newspaper accounts describe as the finest musical library in the city were also lost in the fire. 

Work to rebuild the church commenced immediately and on January 6, 1934, just 11 months after the devastating fire, the congregation returned to their new church building. 

The new building featured a brick exterior, oak woodwork and a Gothic design and seating capacity was increased to 500, up from 350. 

The architect of the new church was Lawrence Koyle who came from the United States but liked the area so much that he settled in this area permanently.  

In 1941, a new pipe organ was finally installed, replacing the one lost in the fire.   

There have been many pastors through the years but in 1947, Pastor Duncan MacGregor became the pastor of First Baptist Church, a position that he was to hold for 33 years until his retirement in 1980. 

He remained as Pastor Emeritus until his death on September 7, 1996. 

His Scottish brogue became well known to many in the city. 

In December of 1980, he was thrilled to be present when his son, Don MacGregor was sworn in as Mayor of Sault Ste. Marie.  

Over the years, some changes were made to the church building including an addition that was added in 1965 to increase the seating capacity in the sanctuary and more recently an elevator was installed to make the church fully accessible.   

First Baptist Church has continued to have a long and important history in our city throughout the years.        

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Each week, the Sault Ste. Marie Public Library and its Archives provides SooToday readers with a glimpse of the city’s past.

Find out more of what the Public Library has to offer at www.ssmpl.ca and look for more Remember This? columns here