The Burtonsville Historical Society
Project Page
The first project of the Burtonsville Historical Society is the acquisition of the Burtonsville Church and parsonage. We are working closely with the Free Methodist Church in Canada to obtain a lease that will allow us to begin preservation and restoration of the site.
The original church structure is of logs, one of the few remaining intact log buildings in this province. This church building was erected in 1936 on an acre of land donated for the purpose by William Henry Walker. The approximate size of the building is 22 by 28 feet with 10 foot walls and three windows on each side. No architect had a hand in designing this building!!
Each church member was charged to donate $7.00 towards the construction of the church and was responsible for delivering two logs, one measuring 30 feet long and one measuring 24 feet long, to the church building site. For each log delivered that member was credited $1.00 toward their assessment. A further dollar was credited for each eight hour day's work at the site. A floor was installed in 1937. Then the building was stuccoed outside and plastered inside. Many years later a porch was added to the front of the building.
In 1949 a 26 by 28 foot parsonage, designed by the Rev. Rogers, was approved by the church board. A permit was obtained to retrieve the logs near the site and six thousand board feet of lumber was sawn.
In 1997 it came to the attention of the Burtonsville Community that this site was to be destroyed. It became apparent that some immediate action needed to be taken and the Burtonsville Historical Society was created. The Burtonsville Cemetery is located on the same site and a lease would allow the Historical Society to provide maintenance to the cemetery site as well as the actual buildings.
Since the establishment of the Society some interesting future projects have been suggested such as the restoration of the last 'One Room Schoolhouse' in the area.