Wawanesa: A Prairie Heritage

The church played an important role in the early days of the Wawanesa area, much as it did in other prairie settlements. The area was predominantly settled by Anglo-Saxon Protestants and so the groups present included Methodists, Presbyterians, and Anglicans.
At first the churches were separate, but because of similar social agendas, the Methodists and Presbyterians felt some kinship. The Anglican church, historically a bastion of conservatism and the upper class, did not share this sort of fraternity. Many Presbyterian and Methodist leaders were strong nationalists and generally called for social action before and during World War I. In 1925 the Presbyterians and Methodists merged to form the United Church of Canada.

Treesbank Anglican Church

In small prairie communities, the church provided a centre for community life. In the late 19th Century almost everyone went to church and the church was involved in many community activities. Every small community had its own church so no one was ever too far away from their place of worship. The buildings were erected and maintained through the efforts of the local congregation; these churches were truly the people’s churches as in many cases the minister would have a whole circuit of churches to attend.

Inside the Nesbitt-Burbank United Church

Church groups, especially the women’s groups, would organize suppers, picnics, concerts, teas, and other events, for the benefit of the church and the community. Women’s groups also played a large role in the community during the Wars. The women would knit and sew clothing and gather packages for those serving overseas.

Wawanesa United Church Choir

Nellie McLung, a political activist and a prominent figure in the suffrage movement, came from Milford, a village just east of Wawanesa. Nellie had this to say of the importance of the church...

"It comforts me now to remember the part that the churches have played in the making of this country. The church sent us missionaries to instruct us , to visit us in our homes, to cheer and encourage us; and they sent us books - books that warmed our hearts and brought us pictures of far places, that opened the golden doors and created for us a sense of fellowship with the wide world, of which we had seen so little.”

Nellie McLung

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