During the next century, the church saw many generations of parishioners, but few
changes were made to the design except for he addition of electric lights, a new brick
portico and a rose window above the pulpit. With the merger of most Presbyterian,
Methodist and Congregationalist churches into the United Church of Canada in the
twenties, many neighbouring churches were now of the same denomination. Eventually,
Trinity United, the larger church up the hill in Annan became the better choice to hold
services. The little Leith Church held it’s last regular Sunday service in 1969.
The United Church realized that the Leith Church was of historical importance. For one
thing, the cemetery behind the church did contain the remains of famed painter, Tom
Thomson. The church leaders just were not sure what to do with this little gem. In 1972
they did proclaim it to be of historical importance. Still it sat unused for well over a
decade.
In 1974 the Ontario government enacted the Ontario Heritage Act. Local Architectural
Conservation Advisory Committees (LACAC) were set up around the province by mu-
nicipal councils to identify local heritage sites. In what was then Sydenham Township
the Leith Church and Leith Pioneer Cemetery were picked as sites that should be looked
at for historical importance. A call was made to area residents and in 1988 forty citizens
attended a meeting to do something about the Leith Church and cemetery. In the end
about a dozen enthusiastic parties created the “Friends of the Leith Church”. It took a
few years for the group to formally organize. By 1992 fundraising efforts and the restora-
tion began. The group also set out to have the church and cemetery designated as an
Ontario Heritage Site.
Amazingly, the fundraising efforts proved to be quite successful and combined with
matching grants that the “Friends” received from the Ontario Ministry of Culture and
Communications they were able to proceed with the first phase of restoration. A new
roof was the first priority, then the interior was tackled. Fortunately, two local highly
skilled woodworkers came forward to take over the interior restoration. Tim Singbeil is
a beef farmer from Balaclava, but he has also re-constructed some of the heritage build-
ings at Black Creek Pioneer Village. Richard Lyons has won international awards for his
attention to detail on antique boats that he has restored in the past. These two craftsmen
led crews of volunteers in dismantling then restoring the church to its past glory.
After extensive efforts by “Friends of the Leith Church” members like George Yost and
his wife Katharine Lochnan, the Ontario Ministry of Culture and Tourism designated the
Leith Church and Pioneer Cemetery as a heritage site in 1992. George said that even
though the group had no idea how to go about getting the designation and as a result
stepped on a few toes along the way, they did manage to get the designation and hold
a grand party to celebrate the plaque unveiling on August 3rd.
Since then most of the renovations have taken place and now it is a matter of keeping
the old building up to the high standard it has. New members of the Friends of the Leith
Church have come forward to bring new life to the old sanctuary. Cam Graham, Pete
Telford and Murray Smith, among others, have developed a series of concerts and
events throughout the year. The main thrust of the concerts revolve around the Leith Sum-
mer Concert Series. The church draws highly talented musicians from around the world
to perform in what has been described as a near perfect performance venue.
*
Five members of the local militia,
Leith Rifles, in their full military regalia.
Only two of the five are identified:
top left - Corporal Neil McNeil;
top centre – Corporal McNeil’s brother-in-
law, Private George Alexander Cameron
FEATURE
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Auld Kirk – New Life
74
Escarpment Magazine Fall 2012