Description of Historic Place

The Saint Antoine de Padoue Church is located adjacent to the Saint Antoine de Padoue Rectory in Batoche National Historic Site of Canada. This small, modest church has a front tower, a gothic arched doorway, and pointed gothic windows. It was built using a Red River frame construction technique and is clad in horizontal wood siding. This church dominates its historic landscape. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The Saint Antoine de Padoue Church is a Classified Federal Heritage building because of its historical associations, and architectural and environmental values.

Historical value:
The Saint Antoine de Padoue Church was the site of events during the Battle of Batoche. Consequently, it is a symbol of the cultural heritage of the Métis population, and represents two historical themes. First, it represents the early activities and influence of the Oblate order (the dominant Roman Catholic order in the Northwest). Second, it represents the clash of Métis and European settler cultures, which resulted in the North-West Rebellion of 1885. The two buildings are directly associated with people such as Louis Riel and his Métis council, and with Major-General Frederick Middleton and the Northwest Field Force, who played significant roles in the Battle of Batoche. The church remained an important institution in Métis communities after 1885, acting as a stabilizing element and cultural centre in an area that was becoming increasingly populated by settlers.

Architectural value:
The Saint Antoine de Padoue Church is a very good example of a typical 19th-century rural church. The building exhibits a modest Gothic Revival style, featuring an arched doorway, pointed windows, front tower and gabled roof with returned eaves. Its architectural value lies in its good quality craftsmanship including the usage of a Red River frame construction technique that was particularly well-suited to structures such as churches which required long, open interior spaces.

Environmental value:
The Saint Antoine de Padoue Church is a dominant structure in its rural surroundings and sets the tone for the Batoche National Historic Site of Canada.

Sources: Shannon Ricketts, The Saint-Antoine-de-Padoue Church, Batoche National Historic Site, Batoche, Saskatchewan, Federal Heritage Building Review Office Building Report 88-160; The Saint-Antoine-de-Padoue Church, Batoche National Historic Site, Batoche, Saskatchewan, Heritage Character Statement, 88-160.

Character-Defining Elements

The following character-defining elements of the Saint Antoine de Padoue Church should be respected.

Its good aesthetic, very good functional design, and good craftsmanship and materials as evidenced in: its modest, clapboard structure with a slender steeple rising above its roofline; its arched, Gothic Revival doorway and windows, front tower and simple gable roof with returned eaves; the simple pleasing lines of the church, its fine proportions and balanced composition; its hall-church plan design, with six Gothic Revival style windows along each side wall of the nave, and a balcony at the back of the nave supported by posts and reached by a single-flight stairway; its Red River frame construction technique, which consists of logs laid horizontally and slotted into grooved vertical timbers at each end; its restored interior with its period furnishings, such as wooden pews.

The manner in which the Saint Antoine de Padoue Church reinforces the historic character of its Batoche National Historic Site of Canada setting and is a familiar, local landmark, as evidenced by: the site of the church, which has been restored to its 1896-1897 appearance; its role in reinforcing the cultural heritage of the local Métis population, as one of the only buildings to have survived in the area from the pre-1885 era; its spatial and historic relationship with the Saint Antoine de Padoue Rectory; its prominent status in its surrounding environment.

Heritage Character Statement

Disclaimer - The heritage character statement was developed by FHBRO to explain the reasons for the designation of a federal heritage building and what it is about the building that makes it significant (the heritage character). It is a key reference document for anyone involved in planning interventions to federal heritage buildings and is used by FHBRO in their review of interventions.

The Saint-Antoine-de-Padoue Church was erected by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate in 1883. The design for the church was initiated by Father Moulin and built by Ludger Gareau. The building is now part of Batoche National Historic Park and is the property of Environment Canada Parks Service. See FHBRO Building Report 88-160.

Reasons for Designation

The Saint-Antoine-de-Padoue Church was designated Classified because of its historical association, its architectural significance and its environmental value.

The Saint-Antoine-de-Padoue Church and Rectory are symbols of the cultural heritage of the Métis population. They represent two historical themes: the early activities and influence of the Oblate order - the dominant Roman Catholic order in the Northwest; and the clash of Métis and white cultures which resulted in the 1885 Rebellion. The buildings are directly associated with people such as Louis Riel and his Métis council, and Major/General Frederick Middleton and the Northwest Field Force, who played significant parts in the Battle of Batoche.

The church is an example of Red River frame construction. This technique consists of logs laid horizontally, pièce sur pièce, and slotted into grooved vertical timbers at each end. The church was restored by the Canadian Parks Service to its 1896-1897 appearance.

The Saint-Antoine-de-Padoue Church and Rectory dominate their surroundings and set the tone for the Batoche National Historic Site.

Character Defining Elements

The heritage character of the church resides in the 1896-1897 restored building, its simple massing and proportions, its construction technique and materials, and in its interior layout and finishes.

The Saint-Antoine-de-Padoue Church is a modest, clapboard structure with a slender steeple rising above its roofline. Its arched, Gothic doorway and windows, front tower and simple gable roof with returned eaves, make it typical of 19th century, rural churches across the country. The simple pleasing lines of the church, its fine proportions and balanced composition should not be compromised.

The church is designed according to a hall plan with six Gothic-style windows along each side wall of the nave, and a balcony at the back of the nave supported by posts and reached by a single-flight stairway. The interior walls are plastered and painted white, the wood-panelled ceiling of the sanctuary is blue and wood trim (cornice, balcony balustrade and communion rail) is varnished. The restored interior with its period furnishings (wooden pews) should be carefully maintained.

The Red River framing technique, which was particularly well suited to structures such as churches which required long, open, interior spaces, is a characteristic of the church which should be maintained.

All maintenance activities and any new work should respect the spirit of the 1896-1897 restored building.

The site of the church, also restored to its 1896-1897 appearance, should be carefully preserved. Any new secondary building on the site should not detract from the historic setting.

For further guidance, please refer to the FHBRO Code of Practice.


1992.05.05