Christ Church Anglican Church

On July 31, 1865, the cornerstone was laid for the building of Christ Church in Niagara Falls, Ontario. There were already Anglican churches at either end of the River Road, St. Mark’s in Niagara-on-the-Lake and Holy Trinity in Chippawa, Services had begun earlier in a second story hall on Bridge Street. They had been moved from there to the Railway depot.

The site chosen for the new building was in Clifton beside the Niagara River, midway between the Falls and the Whirlpool. The building was constructed of Queenston limestone and opened for worship on December 17th of that year. Christ Church remained part of the parish of Holy Trinity until 1874, when it was became a separate parish. The first incumbent was the Reverend E.H. Mussen.

The Church was originally part of the Diocese of Quebec and then of the Diocese of Toronto. In 1875, it became part of the new Diocese of Niagara. That year the choir was moved from the gallery at the rear of the church to the front.

The Mewburn family gave additional land to the Church for a Sunday School and a Rectory in 1888.

In 1912 a set of chimes was installed in the tower, by McShane Bell Foundry of Baltimore, Maryland.

With construction of the international railway bridge the population of Clifton expanded significantly and Christ Church established a Chapel of Ease on Bridge Street for the benefit of members who found the Church on River Road to be too great a distance away. This ultimately became St. Stephen’s Church. Christ Church also became the mother church for the Brock Memorial St. Saviour Church in Queenston.

In 1935, a new tower was added to the church and the bells were repositioned and refurbished. In 1988, major repairs to the building became necessary; a steel tile roof was installed and the walls were rebuilt with steel studding. By Easter of 1989, the congregation was back in the building and the church was rededicated by Bishop Clarence Mitchell.

Christ Church welcomed some of the members of St. Stephen’s and St. Martin’s Anglican Churches with the closing of those churches. The rector in 2018 is the Reverend S. Paul Maynard.