The Town of Huntsville is seeking input from the public on the future of Madill Church.
On May 25, 2017, the United Church of Canada informed the Town of Huntsville that they have no further use or interest in the Madill Church.
The Town of Huntsville wishes to consult the public on this issue, as well as explore options for non-municipal owner-operators including non-profit organizations and private sector options for Madill Church.
The town asks residents to go to this short online Madill Church survey to document their interest prior to July 3, 2017. Hard copies of the survey are available during open hours from Customer Service at Town Hall, 37 Main Street East, or at Customer Service at the Canada Summit Centre, 20 Park Drive.
Chair of the Municipal Heritage Committee Councillor Jason Fitzgerald said, “Currently, the municipality is entertaining the idea of ownership provided we get some non-profit or private sector individuals involved for the refurbishing of Madill Church to keep it as a landmark in our community.”
Madill Church was built of squared-log timbers in 1873. Huntsville’s namesake, Captain George Hunt, arrived in the area in 1869 and is buried in the adjacent cemetery which is owned by the town. The site is marked by a plaque erected by the Ontario Archaeological and Historic Sites Board.
Photo: Morgan Earl
Mayor Scott Aitchison noted that a partnership with an organization which is responsible for preserving the building through fundraising contributions could help save the structure.
For more information or to take the survey by telephone, please contact Teri Souter at [email protected] or at 705.789.1751 x2357. Follow us on @townhuntsville at #achhville
Read more about Madill Church on Huntsville Doppler here.
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Hi John,
You’ll find more recent information on the church at the links below.
https://doppleronline.ca/huntsville/madill-church-renovations-to-start-this-year/
https://doppleronline.ca/huntsville/committee-estimates-that-70000-is-needed-for-immediate-work-on-madill-church/
https://doppleronline.ca/huntsville/councillors-thank-community-group-coming-together-save-madill-church/
I don’t see any comments on what happened to the Church as of about July this year (2017). It pretty good to me. The ridge board looked pretty straight to me but yes the outer base on little pieces of stones was sagged in the middle. That’s going to take $300,000 to fix. WOW. Did it ever get raised and new foundation put under the outside walls. Thank you for any info about the church’s future. I like all old history of churches and schools. Thanks, John.
As Canada approaches 150 will it really not consider saving and refurbishing such a wonderful part of its history?
I have had the pleasure of a 40-year-old association with the extended West-Collins-Dunn clan whose relatives are buried at Madill church.
I urge the local, provincial and federal authorities to preserve this unique part of Canadian history. Certainly my family will contribute to the cause.
Sincerely, John Paton, New York, NY
That question may be answered in the history of Madill church. The Madill family donated the land and so there may not have been a choice of location.
https://www.muskokaregion.com/community-story/7254784-worshipping-history-at-144-year-old-madill-church-in-muskoka/
Agree with you on that. Hopefully those interested will go to the survey link. It is basically asking what you might be able to contribute to the cause: materials, your time, your expertise, your money? A community came together to build this church using their own time, materials and money – hopefully the community can again come together to save it from demolition.
I believe this one and only estimate should be examined and questioned. And get more quotes and I am referring back to Chris Clarke’s comment last week of community coming thru with donations for material and local businesses too. Agree also to a meeting of the minds out there for a better picture. Decisions are made too quickly to demolish which affect our heritage and we are sorry afterwards.
I hope we can find a way to save Madill Church. It is such a historical piece of what is Mukoka.
A question that has been perplexing me is: Why a church so far from Huntsville (5 miles being quite a distance in the days before automobiles) has so many early Huntsville pioneer families buried there including the Wests and the man Huntsville was named after?
For a start, to gain support, can we have a community meeting on the premises? I feel we would gain a better feeling about its history and perhaps hear from expert about the reality of pre serving this building. I would love to gain entrance as I have been photographing from the outside for many years. Please count me in as a supporter of our local treasures.
I would like to comment regarding The Madill Church. The articles states that The United Church of Canada has “no further use or interst in Madill Church”. The fact that the UCC has spent many hours and dollars keeping the building usable indicates the high level of interest even when very few people offered any support of any kind. The Trustees (all from Huntsville) have worked diligently over the decades. Last year the building was declared “unsafe”. Even the above picture shows a sag in the logs – there really is no foundation.
This year Canada is celebrating 150 years since Confederation, and a historic log church, rich in pioneer history, is being considered for demolition? This is appalling. And where did the extremely high cost estimates for restoration come from? Fifteen years ago we had a log house taken apart, moved to our location, rebuilt with some repairs to the logs on a new foundation, with a new roof, second floor loft, and electric service added, all for $25,000. Even with inflation this is a long way from $300,000.
Madill Church with its peaceful cemetery is a resting place for generations of my family, including George West, one of the original pioneers. Those pioneers had a tough challenge, carving a life and community out of the rugged Muskoka terrain and the church was an important symbol of the hope that kept them going.
Another native son buried there is my father and George’s grandson, Bruce West, who grew up in Huntsville and went on to a become one of Canada’s best read and much admired columnists and authors. He was also, incidentally, instrumental in the group that first promoted skiing and winter tourism in Huntsville in the early 1930s.
I know I and my family would be happy to contribute money to a fund to restore the church in its original setting. There are probably matching funds that could be raised from various heritage organizations and “in kind” donations that could be used to lessen the costs. With a little creative thinking the church and its setting could be used to draw tourists, provide a venue for weddings, inspire historical lessons for school children, and other uses that have yet to be imagined.
My grandfather Bruce West – a well known and much loved “Huntsville” boy and on the side a reporter, journalist and author (He was a columnist from the 1930s until the 1970s. In addition to writing a daily column for the the Globe and Mail, he wrote several books, narrated for television and wrote fiction for Maclean’s magazine). He is interned in the Madill Church cemetery, alongside his wife Ada. My great grandmother and my great, great grandparents are also in that same cemetery.
The historic Madill Church is the landmark for the cemetery and an important tourist attraction for the Town of Huntsville and Muskoka. It is included in many tourist books including Susan Prykes’ “Explore Muskoka” and Ron Brown’s “Top 100 Unusual Things To See in Ontario”. This is not a building that can be replaced – and someone should mention to Council that there is already a plaque in place.
I can understand the predicament of the local church board, but the Madill church should be (and should have been) properly maintained and restored by the UCC and valued by both the UCC and municipality. Although it has an historic plaque erected by the Archaeological and Historic Sites Board (the precursor to the Ontario Heritage Trust). I am surprised that this heritage building is not included as one of the municipality’s Designated Heritage Properties. That is truly disappointing.
The historic home I grew up in had been condemned by the building inspectors when it was purchased by a neighbour not willing to see it demolished. It continues today to be a valuable and happy home to a succession of families. So my family knows that even condemned buildings have a future if there is a will and a vision for the future.
Like other commentators on this page, my family feels strongly that this building should be saved and restored and we are willing to support the effort and would contribute to a fund if the Town or another entity is willing to take ownership of the church. Our past experience in restoration of historic family homes (including log buildings) has us questioning the $300,000 value placed on the restoration of this building and it would be helpful to know what the terms of reference were for the study that produced that figure.