Historic Anglican Church and Priceless Artworks Totally Lost in Fire
A 116-year-old Anglican church in Toronto, St. Anne’s Anglican Church, was completely destroyed by a massive fire early Sunday morning. The blaze occurred just hours before the church’s scheduled Sunday service. Despite the efforts of Toronto Fire Services to control the fire, the building and all its contents, including artifacts and artworks, were lost. Notably, the church was known for housing early paintings from the Group of Seven artists. Fortunately, no injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is still under investigation and has not been deemed criminal. The church building, a historic site constructed from 1907 to 1908, was also locked and secure at the time of the incident, according to the parish priest. Authorities and the Ontario Fire Marshal continued to investigate the scene the following day to determine the origin of the fire.
A 116-year-old Anglican church, along with artifacts and artworks, in Canada was “completely destroyed” in a massive blaze early Sunday morning, according to Toronto’s fire chief.
Crews responded to a four-alarm fire at St. Anne’s Anglican Church around 8 a.m., just a little more than two hours before the church’s Sunday morning service was scheduled to take place, City News reported. Firefighters worked to stop the blaze as surrounding properties evacuated as a precaution in case the building collapsed.
“The fire was deep-seated at the beginning … but as you can see the building is completely destroyed right now and as [are] all the artifacts inside,” Toronto Fire Services Deputy Chief Jim Jessop told reporters at the scene.
Absolutely heartbreaking to see these drone shots of Toronto’s St. Anne’s church. It’s completely gutted. So much beauty, so much history, destroyed within hours.
📷: @PatMorrell_CBC pic.twitter.com/dRIf3UHiiW
— Lauren Pelley (@LaurenPelley) June 9, 2024
No one was injured in the fire, and authorities said they have not yet deemed it “criminal in nature.” The Ontario Fire Marshal and Toronto police returned to the scene on Monday to investigate the cause.
“Nobody was here, the church was locked, secure, all the lights were off,” said Rev. Don Beyers, the parish priest at the church. “It’s a real mystery to us how this even happened.”
Construction on the historic St. Anne’s building began in 1907 and was completed in 1908. It housed early paintings from the Group of Seven artists that were installed in the building in the 1920s, CBC reported. Some murals were displayed on the church’s dome, which collapsed in the fire.
“The artwork was priceless,” Beyers said. “It was murals, beautiful murals. They were stunning. This was the only church that featured artwork by members of the Group of Seven. And I’m sorry to say that’s been lost, from what I can see.”
Beyers also wrote a letter to St. Anne’s congregants, saying, “Yesterday’s fire was not the end of the story, but rather the beginning of a new chapter. We will rise from the ashes stronger and even more committed to our mission to be a church for all people.”
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