Little Dutch (Deutsch) Church
Little Dutch Church | ||
---|---|---|
Consecrated 1760 | | |
Events | 1760: steeple added | |
Architecture | ||
Groundbreaking | 1756 | |
Administration | ||
Province | Canada | |
Official name | Little Dutch (Deutsch) Church National Historic Site of Canada | |
Designated | 22 September 1997 | |
Type | Provincially Registered Property | |
Designated | 27 October 1981 | |
St. George |
The Little Dutch (Deutsch) Church is the second-oldest building in
History
The history of the church is associated with a community of "
Coinciding with this epidemic, an estimated thirty individuals were buried in a mass grave on the grounds upon which the church would be built only a few years later. The dead were buried without grave goods or other personal effects.[6] There is also little evidence that they were buried while clothed, though their clothing may have decayed; rope samples indicated that at least one individual may have been buried in sacking or a grave shroud.[6] The trench containing the mass grave had been capped with large stones, which may have been to prevent its disturbance by animals.[6] The grave was bounded by the later foundations of the church, perhaps indicating that the church had been purposefully erected above it.[6]
Not long after this, in 1756, the church was constructed. It was consecrated in 1760.
A fire at St. George's Church in 1994 resulted in the Dutch Church being used regularly once again, leading to increased scrutiny of its structural condition. Concerns were raised about problems with its foundation, and a restoration project began. The project caught the attention of the government of Nova Scotia, and in 1996 an archaeological investigation was conducted which confirmed the 1896 discovery. A second, more full excavation occurred in 1998 following the laying of a new concrete foundation for the church.[6] Following the completion of the archaeological work and analysis of the bones, the individuals were reburied in a new common grave in a multi-faith ceremony involving the Parish of St. George, descendants of the original German settlers, members of the German Canadian Association of Nova Scotia, and Mi'kmaq spiritual leaders.[9]
In 1997, the Little Dutch Church was proclaimed a
Notable interments
Robert Fitzgerald Uniacke is buried in the cemetery and Major Leonard Lockman is buried beneath the Church where his monument remains.[13][14][15]
-
Otto William Schwartz (tablet removed to St. George's Round Church in 1831)
-
Johann Matthäus Holland, Hessian (soldier)
-
Anthony Henry (Printer)
- Major Leonard Lockman, namesake of Lockman St. (now Brunswick St.)[18][19]
- Elliot and Ella, Children of Mark P Seward, 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot
- Elizabeth, Wife of John Fraser, Surgeon, Nova Scotia Fencibles
- Johann Nikolaus Batz, Hessian (soldier), unmarked grave
See also
- List of oldest buildings and structures in Halifax, Nova Scotia
- List of oldest buildings in Canada
- History of the Halifax Regional Municipality
- Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church (Lunenburg)
- Hillcrest Cemetery (Lunenburg, Nova Scotia)
- Old Burying Ground (Halifax, Nova Scotia)
References
Citations
- ^ a b c d e Williams 2003, p. 56.
- ^ Williams 2003, p. 55.
- ^ a b c Williams 2003, p. 58.
- ^ Williams 2003, p. 66.
- ^ a b c d Williams 2003, p. 59.
- ^ a b c d e f Williams 2003, p. 57.
- ^ a b c Williams 2003, p. 60.
- ^ a b c Williams 2003, p. 61.
- ^ a b c Williams 2003, p. 62.
- ^ Henry Roper: A Brief History of the Parish of St George Archived 2008-04-03 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2 September 2013
- ^ Williams 2003, p. 63.
- ^ a b Williams 2003, p. 64.
- ^ Akins 1869, p. 659.
- ^ Blakeley 1974.
- ^ 14 December 1896 edition The Acadian Recorder
- ^ pp. 83-87
- ^ p. 122
- ^ Halifax Gazette, 15 May 1752 announced: "Just imported, and to be sold by Joshua Mauger, at Major Lockman's store in Halifax, several Negro slaves."
- ^ Note the 1896 article Old Chicken Cock Church erroneously asserts that Joseph Gerrish, namesake of Garrish St. is buried under the church. His gravestone is in the Old Burial Ground. (See Old Chicken Cock Church)
Bibliography
- Akins, Thomas B., ed. (1869). Selections from the public documents of the province of Nova Scotia. Charles Annand.
- A Brief History of the Little Dutch Church (St. George). Morton & Co. 1899.
- Blakeley, Phyllis R. (1974). "Lockman, Leonard". In Halpenny, Francess G (ed.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. III (1741–1770) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.
- Williams, Paul B. (Spring 2003). "Raising the Dead: The Use of Osteo-Archaeology to Establish Identity at the Little Dutch Church, Halifax, Nova Scotia". Material Culture Review. 57 (1): 53–67.
Further reading
- Paul Erickson: Anthropological Investigations at the Little Dutch Church in Halifax, in Deutsch-kanadisches Jahrbuch - German Canadian Yearbook, 16, Ed. Lothar Zimmermann, Hartmut Froeschle, Myka Burke. Historical Society of Mecklenburg, ISSN 0316-8603
- Old Chicken Cock Church. 14 December 1896. The Acadian Recorder