St. Stephen's United Church

St. Stephen's United Church is valued for its association with pioneering Delta families and the early development of the East Delta community, settled at an early date in the district's history on account of its flat, fertile land. The first country parish church on the site was built in 1881 on land donated by the McKee family, one of the original pioneering families in the area; two years later the church burned down, and was replaced by this current structure in 1890-91. Originally a Presbyterian denomination, it was a place of worship and community for the McKee, Kittson, Honeyman, Robertson, Smillie, Dennis and Huff families, thus serving as a valuable legacy of Delta's pioneering origins and earliest settlement.

Additionally, St. Stephen's United Church is valued as a good and early example of a simple, Gothic Revival vernacular church structure. Modest in size and form, the church, with its basic rectangular plan and front-gabled roof, is distinguished by Gothic pointed-arch windows. Notably, some of the windows retain their original etched glass panes, with a small, unetched quatrefoil pattern; this glass would not have been available locally and would have been an expensive imported feature. Typical of Presbyterian churches, the decoration of St. Stephen's was minimal and restrained. Well maintained and with few substantial changes other than a rear addition, the church remains in excellent, and mostly original, interior and exterior condition.

St. Stephen's United Church is an early surviving example of the work of prominent local contractor, John B. Elliot (1857-1930), after whom one of Ladner's streets is named. Elliot worked extensively throughout Delta, building many of the most prominent early homes and many commercial buildings, including canneries.