Holy Assumption St. Mary’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church

St. Mary’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church is a Municipal Heritage Property located within the Rural Municipality of Sliding Hills No. 276, approximately 12 kilometres northwest of the Village of Rhein. The property features a wood-frame church and bell tower constructed in 1927, surrounded by a small cemetery founded in 1902.

The heritage value of the St. Mary’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church lies in its status as a place of religious worship in the community. One of the earliest churches in the area, a log structure was constructed on the property in 1902. This church was used by the Ukrainian Orthodox parish as well as other religious denominations before they constructed their own buildings. The original church was lost to fire in 1926, and in the following year, the present building was constructed. While regular services are no longer performed at the church, it is still used for an annual service and for special occasions. Due to this longstanding religious use, the property remains an important spiritual centre for the community.

The heritage value of the property also lies in its association with the Ukrainian heritage of the church’s original parishioners. Many of the settlers who immigrated to the area at the beginning of the twentieth century came from the Bulkovinia province in the Ukraine. They constructed a church which reflected the old world they left, evident the construction of a seperate bell tower and the incorporation of several Byzantine Revival architectural elements. These elements include the central cupola and steeply pitched roof. The style of the church makes it an important landmark in the community and a tangible link to the people that first farmed in this region.

Source:

Rural Municipality of Sliding Hills No. 276 Bylaw 2-2003.

The heritage value of St. Mary’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church resides in the following character-defining elements:

-those elements that reflect the status of the church as a place of worship in the community, including its location on its original site, tombstones in the cemetery arranged in rows, and the cross on top of the cupola;

-those elements that reflect Ukrainian heritage of the church’s original parishioners, including the commemorative stone cairn and plaque relating the early history of the property, Byzantine Revival elements of the church such as the central cupola, the rounded sanctuary, the steep roof, and the seperate bell tower.