Worship began in Amherstburg when the British forces abandoned Fort Detroit in 1796 and moved downriver. Services were initially conducted at the Indian Council House north of Fort Malden by The Rev. Richard Pollard (1753-1824). After the War of 1812 in which he was a prisoner-of-war, Pollard received a grant from the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel (S.P.G.) to build four churches, one of which was Christ Church.
The land for the Church had been part of the Fort’s burial ground donated by Col. Wm. Caldwell on condition that a pew be reserved for his family, as still recognized today by a brass plaque. Graves date from 1809 and the War of 1812. The walls were erected by the Royal Army Engineers in thickness reminiscent of a powder house. The brick was a gift of Robert Reynolds of the Fort’s Commissariat, and brought by barge from River Rouge, near Detroit. To ensure that the roof was waterproof, the Royal Navy built it as a ship’s hull upside down in Norse fashion. The 10” square timbers are handhewn with wooden nails made by former slaves at Col. Elliott’s home. Architecturally, the church is in the traditional Romanesque style, rectangular with an apsidal east end, typical of 19th c. British churches.
According to Pollard’s letters to the S.P.G., the Church was finished in 1818 and opened on 12 Dec. 1819. It is original in construction, with later additions of a porch in 1853 and chancel extensions in 1873 and 1953, the latter as a war memorial. Decoration is sparse, consisting of large, stained-glass windows a century or more older, notable among them the Masonic and Great Lakes Mariners’ windows. Plaques on the walls memorialize the military presence, such as Capt. Barclay of the Battle of Lake Erie and Capt. Rogers who fought at Waterloo.
Christ Church, Amherstburg, looking east, Harvest Home 1875
Christ Church, Amherstburg, 1890’s, looking west.
Being original, the church is the oldest in Ontario.
THE REVEREND RICHARD POLLARD
As the population of Upper Canada grew after the great influx of United Empire Loyalists, the Diocese of Quebec and its formidable Bishop Jacob Mountain realized a need for more ordained priests, especially to counter the growing popularity of Methodism.
In the western area, the need was met by Richard Pollard, a man for all seasons and trades. Born in London, England, on New Year’s Day, 1753, he later trained in law and business and emigrated to Quebec in time to take part in defeating the American invasion of 1775-76. At various times, he was a trader with the aboriginals in Kingston, Niagara, and Detroit, land speculator, soldier in the British 8th Regiment at Fort Detroit, sheriff and registrar of deeds for Essex and Kent counties, justice of the peace, school trustee, member of the land board, postmaster, and judge of the Surrogate Court.
His lack of success and continuous debt led him to undertake clergy duties, firstly, from 1792, as a lay missionary in Detroit and Sandwich under Rev. Robert Addison of Niagara, then as a deacon from 20 March 1802, followed by the priesthood from 2 June 1804, in each case ordained by Bishop Mountain at Quebec City. His diaconate appointment was to Sandwich with a chaplaincy to the garrison at Fort Malden, Amherstburg, and thus, the congregations in the two locales commenced together. The places of worship were a small wooden structure upon the site of which the present St. John’s Sandwich now stands and at the Indian Council House at Fort Malden, which was the largest meeting place in Amherstburg. In the War of 1812, both places were detroyed, Pollard’s home was damaged beyond repair, and he was taken prisoner at the Battle of Moraviantown where the brave Chief Tecumseh fell. After his release and a brief period spent in the York (Toronto) area, he returned to Sandwich and, with a grant from the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel (S.P.G.), he began raising funds for the building of four churches at Amherstburg, Sandwich, Chatham, and Colchester, which were opened, successively, on 12 Dec. 1819, 11 June 1820, October 1820, and January 1821. He remained the resident priest at Sandwich until his death on 6 Nov. 1824, remembered by all as charitable, kind, and humane.
1. Dictionary of Canadian Biography, v. VI, pp. 599-602.
2. Stuart, Henry Coleridge, “The Episcopate of Jacob Mountain”, unpublished, 1909, Quebec Diocesan Archives, pp. 61, 114.
3. Headon, Christopher, “The Discreet and Good Richard Pollard: The Problems of a Clergyman and Office-Holder”, in The Western District, Essex County Historical Society and The Western District Council, 1983. pp. 16-167.
4. Obituary, Montreal Gazette, 4 Dec. 1824.