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Because History repeats itself...
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Sainte-Brigide de Kildare Church
1174 Champlain Street
Architectural value
Sainte-Brigide de Kildare was built in 1878-1880 by architect Louis-Gustave Morin using a Romanesque revival vocabulary often associated with Sulpician buildings such as the Notre-Dame de Lourdes chapel built by the Sulpicians during the same period in the Quartier Latin. It has received superior heritage recognition in the inventory of Quebec places of worship. With its remarkable presbytery and its works, it forms an ensemble of interest. Its bell tower and that of Saint-Pierre Apôtre form a remarkable ensemble.
Historic value
The Sainte-Brigide de Kildare Church was built to serve the Irish community in the Faubourg à M’lasse. Saint Brigid of Kildare is one of Ireland’s patron saints, and, in the early 19th century, the Sulpicians had already contributed to the building of an orphanage in her name. The presence of this church illustrates the various dimensions of the presence of the Catholic Church in Montréal neighbourhoods, particularly in terms of organizing activities and serving working-class neighbourhoods.
The threat
The church was recently sold and is now the focus of a project developed with the cooperation of academics and architects to divide up the nave into space for housing, community services, and apparently a small place of worship, conserving only a few fragments of the original building. As demonstrated by recent revelations concerning the closing of the extraordinary Très Saint-Nom de Jésus and Saint-Clément de Viauville churches in the Maisonneuve district, the Sainte-Brigide de Kildare church is not an isolated case, and we must urgently address the issue of the conservation, conversion, and transmission of this heritage. The danger is that events will be allowed to proceed on an ad hoc basis in what appears to be the spirit of a think tank and architectural exploration without any clear commitment to this heritage and its protection.
Actions of Heritage Montreal
For the past twenty years, Héritage Montréal has been reminding Montréal and Québec authorities of their responsibility to this heritage and of the importance of adopting a comprehensive approach rather than reacting to each situation on a case-by-case basis. In 1990, we managed to ensure that the City of Montreal’s master plan continued to include places of worship and religious institutions in a separate category, rather than lumping them together with other buildings. We have also formulated a strategic plan for downtown churches that face particular challenges resulting from the social services they provide, and participated in the extraordinary sittings of the National Assembly on religious heritage. Given the lack of concrete results from the City of Montreal’s promise to develop a coherent strategy to deal with this issue affecting the heritage identity of the metropolis and its neighbourhoods, the general meeting of Heritage Montreal urged the City to immediately mandate the Conseil du patrimoine to hold consultations to develop a Montreal strategy that could be integrated in the master plan to help prevent the state of disarray and demolitions otherwise likely to occur.
To help safeguard this site, write to us.
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