"St George's Church and Community"

Establishing a new community

Foreign Protestants brought in to help the British found Halifax adapted quickly to conditions in their new home, worked hard and prospered. Today, their church is a living reminder of their faith, tenacity and vision.

June 1749: The founding of Halifax

Edward Cornwallis brought 2000 settlers to Nova Scotia to establish a military base (to be called Halifax) as part of Britain’s struggles with France for supremacy in North America.

Most of these settlers came from English cities. It soon became apparent that they did not possess the skills needed to carve a new colony out of the wilderness, so Cornwallis arranged for the British government to send "Foreign Protestants" to Halifax. These hard-working immigrants, most of whom spoke German, sought freedom from religious, economic and political stress in Europe.

1750-1753: The Foreign Protestants

More than 300 "Foreign Protestants" arrived on the ship Ann. Many of them died of Typhus (ship fever) following the voyage and were buried in a mass grave on a piece of land outside the palisade given to the newcomers as a burying ground.

1750-1753: In all, 3000 German, Swiss and French immigrants arrived in Halifax. They were placed in the "north suburbs" near the burying ground. However, in 1753 most of the newcomers moved on to settle Lunenburg. Many of today’s German street names (Brunswick, Gottingen, Artz) reflect the influence of these early settlers.

1753 on: The German families who stayed in Halifax were led by a prosperous fur trader, Otto William Schwartz, whose descendants founded the W.H. Schwartz and Son spice company.

1756: Moving the Little Dutch (Deutsch) Church
To satisfy their longing for a church in which to practice their Lutheran faith, the Germans moved a cottage to the burying ground and placed it over the grave of the settlers who died in 1750. In 1760, they extended the building and added a spire in the style of their homeland, topped by a weathervane fashioned from a shovel. Otto Schwartz became the first elder of the church.

1756-1786: The Lutheran and Anglican Traditions
The community could not afford a pastor, so at first the Lutheran services, in German, were conducted by the schoolmaster, Johann Gottfried Torpel. The Little Dutch (Deutsch) Church was officially a chapel of Saint Paul’s. It was consecrated to Saint George by the rector of Saint Paul’s in 1760. Twice a year Holy Communion was celebrated according to the Anglican rite, and in 1779 the congregation purchased its own magnificent silver communion service from England. But it still had no pastor.

1786: The Rev’d Bernard Houseal
The need for a pastor was finally met when the German loyalist The Rev’d Bernard Houseal (formerly a Lutheran pastor in New York) came to Halifax as a missionary for the German population. Before taking up this charge, he was ordained an Anglican priest in London. He ministered to the German community until his death in 1799 and is buried under the Little Dutch Church.

1790: The congregation expanded and prospered. Many non-Germans attended, and English was increasingly used. A larger church was needed. Just 40 years after the Foreign Protestants arrived in Halifax, plans were being made, under the patronage of Edward Duke of Kent, for a magnificent new Saint George’s. Construction of the round church began in 1800.

1800 on…A changed role
After the congregation began to worship in the new Saint George’s, the Little Dutch Church was used occaisionally for services and as a school. The burying ground remained in use until 1843. Carved on its stones are the names of many families of "Foreign Protestants" whose descendants are now spread throughout North America.

courtesy NSARM