Trinity Church and Rectory National Historic Site of Canada

The Trinity Church and Rectory National Historic Site of Canada consists of a conventional Georgian designed basilican church and a two-storey Georgian residence built in 1789. Standing on opposite sides of Route 845 in the village of Kingston, New Brunswick, they constitute a rare example of both a church and its associated rectory surviving from the 18th century. The designation refers to the church on its footprint and the rectory on its footprint.

The Trinity Church and Rectory was designated a national historic site of Canada in 1977 because:

- built in 1789, it is the oldest surviving Anglican church in New Brunswick;

- it is a rare example, in the Maritimes, of both church and rectory surviving, as a unit, from the 18th century; and,

- the rectory exhibits many characteristics of a classical Georgian residence, while the church retains some of its Georgian composition.

Loyalists arrived in Kingston in 1784, and made provisions for the establishment of an Anglican Church. A hilltop site was selected in 1787, and both the church and the rectory were constructed by 1789. Although the 19th century saw successive improvements and expansions in the Gothic Revival style, Trinity Church follows the conventional basilican pattern of a longitudinal nave with the entrance at one end and the altar at the other. Trinity Church retains some of the harmonious sobriety usually associated with Georgian design.

The Rectory was constructed in 1787-88 to house the first resident minister and his family. It has retained much of its traditional, unpretentious form, and still exhibits many characteristics of a middle-class home of the Georgian period. The Trinity Church and Rectory form a remarkable unit, since surviving examples of both these buildings from the 18th century appear to be rare in the Maritimes.

Sources: Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, Minutes, October, 2007; Screening Paper, 1977.

Key elements that relate to the heritage value of this site include:

- its prominent location on opposite sides of Route 845 in the village of Kingston, New Brunswick and the exterior spatial configuration of the church and rectory which form a unit;

- the harmonious sobriety and traditional, unpretentious form associated with Georgian design;

- the interior layout of the rectory, including its two-storey, rectangular form with a central doorway, and main floor interior arrangement of four rooms around the central hallway;

- the remaining elements of the church’s original Georgian composition;

- the materials and craftsmanship associated with the period of the church and rectory’s construction;

- those aspects illustrating the original design and function, including the fireplaces and ovens that remain in situ, the flooring and other woodwork, the arched opening trimmed in a refined Georgian style with fluted pilasters and an elliptical arch with keystone, and traces of 18th-century window frame moulding with a near semi-circular curve;

- those characteristics associated with its significance as the oldest surviving Anglican church in New Brunswick, including extant materials and furnishings that may remain in situ in the building;

- its continued use and the customs and traditions that were or continue to be associated with the Trinity Church and Rectory.