Halifax Public Libraries

St. Matthew’s is one of the oldest Protestant church communities in Halifax. Founded in late 1749, a location for a Protestant Dissenting Church was granted at the corner of Hollis and Prince streets. The first church building was completed in 1754 but became known as St. Matthew’s Presbyterian in 1820. The first St. Matthew’s burned down in 1857 and the congregation purchased land for a new building from the Pro-Confederation Anglican Bishop Hibbert Binney (1819-1887) at the corner of Barrington Street and Spring Garden Road. The current St. Matthew’s Church was completed in 1859, just eight years before Confederation.

The Minister for St. Matthew’s in 1867 was Pro-Confederation clergyman George Monro Grant (1835-1902), a follower of Sir Charles Tupper who advocated both for a united Canada and a United Presbyterian church. In 1872 Grant travelled across Canada by rail with St. Matthew’s parishioner Sir Sandford Fleming and wrote the book Ocean to Ocean which expressed excitement for both the railway and the new country.

Date: 1915

Reference: Halifax Public Libraries Postcard Collection Halifax Central Library HPL-PC-0111

For more information, please contact the Local History Room at the Halifax Central Library.