Jarvis Street Baptist Church

Photos by Alan L Brown - Posted September, 2006

Very near Allan Gardens at the northeast corner of Jarvis and Gerrard streets, this church was designed by Edmund Burke who also designed the Bloor Viaduct and The Simpsons (now the Bay) department store at Queen and Yonge. A 1975 Toronto Historical Board plaque on the church wall says:

Plaque coordinates: 43.660638 -79.375749

The congregation of this church was formally organized in 1829, with chapels on Lombard Street (1832) and Bond Street (1848). Growing membership necessitated a new building, and this Gothic Revival church, designed by Edmund Burke, was begun in May, 1874. Built of Queenston stone, it was one of the first in Canada to use a U-shaped galleried auditorium. The Jarvis Street Baptist Church was dedicated in December, 1875, and has maintained an active Ministry in this area.

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Jarvis Street Baptist Church
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Posted October 31, 2010
The bronze plaque is incorrect. The "U-shaped gallery and Auditorium" referred to was originally horse-shoe shaped when finished in 1875. The fire of 1938 destroyed most of the Auditorium. It was rebuilt according to details within the original 1874 drawings in the possession of Architects Horwood and White--except, the choir, organ loft, baptistry, pulpit and communion platform arrangements. The space provided for the organ and choir was widened by about 15 feet-effectively 'pushing' the old horse-shoe shape open and wider to form a perfect "U" shape with parallel sides. The change was reflected in the subsequent placement of the new pews in the rebuilt auditorium. The previous, desirable "wrap around" effect of the old auditoriums seating was forever lost at that time-along with the original character and genius invested in the 1874 plans that happened to feature a unique and hitherto unknown arrangement of choir pews, organ, communion table and pulpit. By the time of the fire, the arrangement seen in the 1874 drawings had vanished after a number of changes to the Auditorium and organ between 1875 and the fire of 1938. Since 1939, the "new" auditorium has seen few changes; the interior was repainted in 1961 and gold leaf applied to the organ facade pipes. The pulpit platform carpet was replaced in the late 1980's. According to legend, the Pastor of the Church, Dr. TT Shields, who was involved with every aspect of the rebuilding effort, was caught by surprise when he first saw the apparent unexpected re-positioned pews in the rebuilt auditorium. He must have been shocked by the oversight and reportedly remarked: "it looks like an insane asylum".

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