St. Michel de Sillery Church, Quebec

St Michel de Sillery Church
Église Saint-Michel de Sillery

Front with statues of the Canadian Martyrs
St Michel de Sillery Church
Location in Quebec City
Coordinates: 46°46′27″N 71°14′39″W / 46.774279°N 71.244043°W / 46.774279; -71.244043
Location 1600, rue du Cardinal-Persico
Quebec City, Quebec
G1T 1H3
Country Canada
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website Paroisse-Saint-Michel.org
History
Former name(s) St Columb Church
Founded 1644 (1644)
Founder(s) Society of Jesus
Dedication Saint Michael
Dedicated 1969
Architecture
Status Active Parish church
Architect(s) Goodlatte Richardson Browne and
Joseph-Ferdinand Peachy
Groundbreaking 1852
Completed 1854
Administration
Archdiocese Quebec

St Michel de Sillery Church (French: Église Saint-Michel de Sillery) is a Roman Catholic Parish church in Sillery, Quebec City. It is situated between Quebec Route 136 to the south and the College of Jesus and Mary of Sillery to the north and is in the borough of Sainte-Foy–Sillery–Cap-Rouge. Although, the current church was built on 1852 and was originally dedicated to Saint Columba, it was founded in 1644 on the same site as a chapel by the Jesuits.

History

Maison des Jésuites, the house of the Jesuits, near to the church
Joseph-Ferdinand Peachy, architect of the church

Foundation

In 1637, the Jesuits arrived and founded a mission in the area. They built the Maison des Jesuites to minister to the local First Nations population. They named their mission after Saint Joseph. In 1644, they built a chapel, dedicated to Saint Michael, for the French and First Nations peoples on a promontory in Sillery known as Pointe à Puiseaux. The Jesuits left in the late 1600s.[1]

Until 1847, the local Catholic population had to travel to Sainte-Foy or Quebec City to attend Mass. That year, a local timber merchant, Patrick McInenly, had his house converted into a place of worship, St. Richard's Chapel. Later, with the congregation increasing, it was decided to build a church on the site of the first chapel.[1]

Construction

Construction on the church began in 1852. It was originally dedicated to Saint Columb. Originally, it was designed by Goodlatte Richardson Browne. In 1853, Joseph-Ferdinand Peachy took over as architect. In 1854, it was opened. In 1855, it became a parish church. In 1880, the bell tower was completed and a spire was added according to Peachy's designs.[2]

Developments

When the church was opened, most of the work on the interior had not started. This work began in October 1866 and was based on Browne's designs. Peachy supervised the work and Jean Vézina crafted the wooden decor and Maurice Larose did the masonry. In 1945, the Gothic Revival interior was changed during a renovation. The gold and white wooden altar was moved to the sacristy and a brown granite one from Chicoutimi was installed in its place.[3] The choir stalls were removed and a wooden balustrade was replaced by a communion table made of iron. The pulpit was removed and new pews were installed. The stations of the cross were replaced with metal ones.[4]

In 1969, the church was renamed St. Michel de Sillery. It was done to honour Pierre de Puiseaux. He was a former owner of Pointe à Puiseaux.[5]

Parish

St Charles Garnier Church is in the same parish as St Michel de Sillery Church

The church is in the same parish as St. Charles Garnier Church (French: Église Saint-Charles-Garnier). It was founded on 7 August 1944 when Cardinal Villeneuve authorised the creation of a new parish, under the patronage of Saint Charles Garnier for the people in the northern part of the Sillery area. In the autumn of 1947, the church, designed by Charles A. Jean and built by François Jobin & Co., was opened.[6]

As the two churches are now in the same parish, their Mass times do not conflict. St. Michel de Sillery Church has a Sunday Mass at 11:00am. It also Masses at 4:30pm on Wednesday and Friday. St. Charles Garnier Church has Masses for Sunday at 4:30pm on Saturday and at 9:30am on Sunday morning. It also has Masses at 4:30pm on Monday, 5:30pm on Tuesday and 4:30pm on Thursday.[7]

Exterior

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "On the Promontory of Pointe à Puiseaux" from Saint-Michel de Sillery Church: History and Works of Art
  2. ↑ St-Michel de Sillery Church from Patrimoine-religieux.com, retrieved 31 May 2015
  3. ↑ Église de Saint-Michel-de-Sillery from Églises de Québec, retrieved 1 June 2015
  4. ↑ "Interior of the Church" from Saint-Michel de Sillery Church: History and Works of Art
  5. ↑ Histoire de reaconter from Quebec City Council, retrieved 31 May 2015
  6. ↑ Les trésors de l'église Saint-Charles-Garnier from Le Soleil, 4 November 2012, retrieved 31 May 2015
  7. ↑ Directory from Archdiocese of Quebec, retrieved 31 May 2015
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