‘Lost to history’: Historic rural Sask. church burns to the ground

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Taken in 2018 (Courtesy: Prairie Past)

The church grew increasingly dilapidated over the years. This was taken in 2018. (Courtesy: Prairie Past)

Taken in 2014 (Courtesy: Prairie Past)

Taken in 2014 (Courtesy: Prairie Past)

Taken in 2014 (Courtesy: Prairie Past)

Taken in 2014 (Courtesy: Prairie Past)

Taken in 2014 (Courtesy: Prairie Past)

An historic rural church in north-central Saskatchewan burned down on Friday.

According to Ryan Scragg, reeve of the RM of Garden River, people first noticed the flames around 10:30 Friday night. By the time RCMP and Garden River volunteer firefighters arrived at the site around 11:30 p.m., the church was “too far gone to save.”

“There was no way once the fire started that it was going to be put out,” Scragg told CTV News in a phone interview.

The St. Peter and Paul Catholic Church was built over 100 years ago in Claytonville, Sask., located northeast of Prince Albert. The church sat about midway between Prince Albert and the forks, where the north and south Saskatchewan rivers meet. It was accessible from the south by the Cecil Ferry.

In a Facebook post on Sunday, a group that documents abandoned prairie landmarks mourned the loss of the historic building.

“Sad to see another church in Saskatchewan burned to the ground,” Prairie Past wrote to a group that commemorates unique prairie churches.

Scragg is certain the fire is a case of arson.

“One-hundred per cent. There’s no power out there. There’s no natural cause that could have done it … no lightning in February,” he said.

In a blog post, Prairie Past describes the history of the church as told by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Prince Albert in its own regional history book.

It says the church was the product of an influx of Polish immigrants to the area that began in 1906, who situated the building high on a hill. At the foot of the hill, they built a school, and to the north, a cemetery.

“Every year on the feast of the two saints Peter and Paul, the church would hold mass. They had a procession outside and around the church. The celebration included banners, music, singing, flowers, and the blessed sacrament.”

The two contributors behind Prairie Past say they visited the site often.

“We have visited the church many times over the years but didn’t always stop to take photographs. It truly was a great landmark for the area. Each visit showed further vandalization but that is the reality of abandoned churches,” they said in a blog post.

Scragg agrees the church was a major landmark in the area, and he said it carried “a lot of memories for a lot of people.”

“There was a small group of caretakers that had planned to remove the steeple and make a monument to it. Since someone decided to go burn it down, it’s kind of lost to history,” he said.