Timeline Cards For the 40th Anniversary of the Consecration of St. John’s, Salmon Arm
- Salmon Arm began as a farming hamlet centred on Hedgeman’s Corners (intersection of 30th St SW and TransCanada Highway.
- 1880’s…Services were held in Christopher B. Harris’ log farmhouse when a priest would come from Enderby.
- 1891…St. George’s, Enderby, was the centre for mission oversight (the endpoint for the paddle wheelers from Kamloops).
- Communities served from Enderby Mission were: Grindrod, Mara, Vernon, Sicamous, Salmon Arm, Westwold, Falkland, and Armstrong.
- 1895-1904…Regular services were held in the Orange Lodge (180 Lakeshore Dr. NE) as part of the Anglican Mission of Enderby-Armstrong.
- 1905, May 14… At the first Annual General Meeting of the congregation, it was recorded that a property had been donated for a church by Mr. Henry Charles Fraser – the present site.
- Mr. Richard Hobson appears to be a prime moving force to raise finances, obtain regular priestly visits, have a church building erected, and have Salmon Arm established as a separate parish. He also took services.
- 1907, April 14…A contract for $1500 to build a church was approved. 1907, Trinity Sunday…First service in the new church was held by the Vicar of Enderby after 6 weeks of construction.
- 1907, September 8…Bishop Dart consecrated the building in the name of St. John the Evangelist. He appointed Rev. R Hilton as the first vicar of the parish.
- 1907, October 13… St. John’s became a self-supporting parish within the Diocese of Kootenay.
- 1925…The Church Committee and the Women’s Auxiliary approved plans for a parish hall. It was built with additions made in 1941 and 1956.
- 1928…St. Luke’s Church was built at North Canoe
- 1955…Name change from “Church of England in the Dominion of Canada” to “Anglican Church of Canada”
- 1973…Annual General Meeting of the Parish of Salmon Arm-Canoe-Sicamous set up a Parish Council.
- 1976, February 29…St. John’s congregation approved plans for a new church.
- 1979…Bishop Fraser Berry presided at the last service in the old church of St. John the Evangelist. It was a service of Confirmation, the Eucharist, and deconsecration of the church.
- 1979, May 9 at 6:15 a.m. The Church of St. John the Evangelist was demolished. Services were then held in the church hall for about 7 ½ months.
- 1979, December 16…The first service was held in the new church.
- 1980, March 25…Bishop Fraser Berry dedicated the new church building of St. John the Evangelist, Salmon Arm, to accommodate the growing needs of the congregation.
- 1980…The very hard-to-heat church hall was demolished.
- 1981…The Annual General Meeting of St. Luke’s, Canoe, voted unanimously to close its building and worship at St. John’s, Salmon Arm.
- 1981…St. Luke’s was deconsecrated in 1982 and removed in 1983. The property was sold to the District of Salmon and became the site of a fire hall. The entire proceeds of $35,000 was given to St. John’s debt retirement fund.
- 1984…On the 77th Anniversary of the original St. John’s (1907), Bishop Fraser Berry consecrated the new church of St. John the Evangelist, Salmon Arm
- In the Anglican Church, a church building may be ‘dedicated’ as soon as it is completed. It is not ‘consecrated’ until it can be pronounced ‘free from all legal liability for debt’.
- Church pews…The original pews from 1907 were used until 1984 when they were replaced with those now in use.
- 1994, July…The Brush property adjacent to the church (41 – 2nd Ave SE) was purchased from the Brush Estate for $73,000 with loans from the bank, parish funds, and parishioners (parking lot extension).
- “The greatest benefit had to be the joy and fellowship that came from working together for the Lord” (K.A.P.) “It was a real blessing to see young children doing a workmanlike job of nailing down flooring while the elderly and frail prepared lemonade or other goodies to sustain those doing physical tasks” (K.A.P.)
- 2019…St. John the Evangelist Church celebrated 40 years since the construction of the ‘new’ church building in 1979.
- 2024, September 8…St. John the Evangelist Church celebrates 40 years since its consecration in 1984 on September 8.
