Climax residents answer the need for religious services
When communities pop up on the prairie, it doesn’t take long before there are churches offering religious services to the residents of the communities.
In Climax, three main churches served that purpose for residents.
The first Anglican Church was organized at the Climax Hall in 1924, with Sunday School being taught by Elizabeth Tooth.
Two years later, the Parish Hall was built by Ab Blakeway, which had two rooms in the back for the resident minister and his family.
The church continued to operate out of that location for many years. In 1954, an old one-room school was pulled into the community and decorated by Bob Bridges and Ted Burke.
It was then used as the new Anglican Church and was dedicated by the Right Reverend Michael Coleman.
For those who were of the Catholic faith, the first Catholic Church was built in 1925 with eight families donating $40 each to ensure the church was built.
William McNabb was the carpenter and with limited funds, the structure was a simple one. The first planned wedding in that church was between Adelard Trudeau and Agnes Koudelka in October of 1925. Unfortunately, the priest fell ill and the wedding took place in Frenchville.
The first funeral was for Julia Jeager in 1936.
The congregation used that church until 1945 when it was expanded on and improved in several ways. In 1966, a new building was built, and was still modest due to the availability of funds.
The building was constructed by members and Reverend Father Foley was the first priest for the new church. The first major use of the church was the wedding of Richard Van Allen and Penny Pauley on May 19, 1967. The first funeral was for Mary Lis on Jan. 17, 1970.
Due to the proximity of the United Church next door, the Catholic Church served as an overflow church for the United congregation.
As for the United Church, it was in 1926 that a building fund was started after the congregation had spent time having church services in many places including the local restaurant, pool hall, school and congregation member houses.
Congregation members were the labour to build the church, which cost $4,000 to build in all.
Things went well for the church but during The Great Depression, times were tough. Nonetheless, the church ensured that people had clothes and what they needed.
At the time, the minister was paid out of a jam can that included the collection taken from residents who attended the church.
In 1951, an addition was built on the church and members began to donate new furniture and stained glass windows in honour of the loved ones who had passed on.
Suggestions for columns or questions? E-mail Craig at crwbaird@ gmail.com. Listen to his podcast by searching for “Canadian History Ehx” on your podcast platform.
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Information for this column comes from Prairie Wool: A History Of Climax and Surrounding School Districts