Intention to Designate 265 Wilson St E, Ancaster (Ryerson United Church)

Description of Property

The 1.0-hectare property municipally addressed as 265 Wilson Street East, Ancaster, is comprised of a one-storey stone church constructed in 1869. The property is located on the west side of Wilson Street East, north of the intersection of Wilson Street East and Halson Street, in the historic Village of Ancaster in the community of Ancaster, in the City of Hamilton.

Statement of Cultural Heritage Value or Interest

The one-storey stone chapel located at 265 Wilson Street East, known historically as the Wesleyan Methodist Church and Ryerson Chapel, has physical value as a representative example of a nineteenth-century rural place of worship influenced by the Gothic Revival style of architecture. It also displays a high degree of craftsmanship through its ashlar stone courses, pointed arch window and door openings, and the carved date stone under the peak of the front gable.

The property has historical value for its direct long-standing association with the United Church in Ancaster, which has had a presence in Ancaster since 1808, and prominent Ancasterian George Guest (1811-1878). Guest, a member of the congregation, donated the stone for the construction of the chapel from the quarry he operated nearby. The congregation has been present on its current site since 1869, and repeated additions to the original church have allowed it to continue to serve their changing needs. The church would not gain its present name until 1925, when the congregation joined the newly formed United Church of Canada; the name of Ryerson United Church being chosen to remember their Methodist roots.

Contextually, this property supports and maintains the historic nineteenth-century village character of Wilson Street East. Sited on its original location surrounded by the other nineteenth-century buildings of Ancaster’s historic village core, this property is functionally, historically, and visually linked to its surroundings.

Key attributes that embody the physical value of the property as a representative example of a place of worship influenced by the Gothic Revival and in displaying a high degree of craftsmanship, and its associations with the United Church community in Ancaster, include:

• The front (east) and side (north and south) elevations and roofline of the 1869 stone chapel building, including its:
  • Front gable roof;
  • Buff brick chimney with sawtooth brickwork; 
  • Stone facades, including even-course ashlar stone on the front (east) elevation and rubblestone facades on the side (north and south) elevations;
  • Pointed arch window and door openings with stone voussoirs, keystones, and lug sills;
  • Wooden frame windows with leaded stained glass;
  • Projecting front vestibule with gable roof, even-course ashlar and rubblestone facades;
  • Datestone below gable peak on east elevation reading “Wesleyan M. Church, New Zion, A.D. 1869”;
  • Brass plaque at southeastern corner of church reading “Ryerson United Church Chapel. Congregation Founded 1808. “Other men laboured, and ye have entered into their labour”. Chapel Dedicated 1960.”; and,
  • Stone foundation. 

Key attributes that embody the contextual value of the property as a supporting element in the historic character of Wilson Street East and Ancaster Village, include its:

• Location fronting onto the public right-of-way along Wilson Street East.