St. Stephen the Martyr Anglican Parish (Thunder Bay, Ont.) is a single point parish comprising the congregation of St. Stephen the Martyr Anglican Church (Thunder Bay, Ont.). St. Stephen's was consecrated on December 14, 1930 by the Rocksborough Remington Smith, the Bishop of the Algoma Diocese.
The Rev'd Percy Steed of St. John's Anglican Church suggested the idea of the Current River Mission to Bishop Rocksborough Smith. Lee Greene, a student of Bishop's College in Lennoxville Quebec, led the first official worship service of the Mission December 4, 1927; in the home of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Potter on Hodder Avenue. He would later be ordained, and become the first Incumbent. By mid-January 1928, these services were held in the Mission House on Conyers Street, however desire for a church led to the formation of a building committee, Mr. W. Basford drew the plans. The diocese loaned the vestry six hundred dollars to assist with the purchase of materials. Under the supervision of Mr. H. Potter the parishioners constructed St. Stephen the Martyr Anglican Church. The Rev. D. Popey, the Rural Dean, dedicated the building on St. Stephen's Day, December 26, 1928. It was the second largest Anglican Church in Port Arthur, and the first church building in Current River.
St. Stephen's joined with the Port Arthur Missions, which consisted of the congregations of St. George and St. Michael's and by May of 1932 it became a self-supporting parish. The post-war housing construction in Port Arthur and Current River brought new families into the area. Other churches were built in Current River at this time including Current River United Church in 1948, and Our Lady of Loretto Roman Catholic Church in 1952. Both St. Stephen's became independent in 1952. In 1955 a basement was dug at St. Stephen's, which allowed the space to be used for a parish hall. Until the parish hall was built Sunday School had been held upstairs.
The Rev. Bob Lumley, already Incumbent to St. Stephen's (October 1958 to March 1967), also became the first Chaplain to the Missions to Seamen in 1962. A controversy during his tenure was the moving of the crucifix from the back of the nave to the front. In 1970 a Vestry Room was added, and eleven stained glass windows were installed over an eleven-year period. In 1981 the Anglican Church Women installed a triptych in the sanctuary in memory of past members.
The parish hall was renovated in 1991, and the difficulty of renting out the Rectory led to its being sold in 1992. The pulpit was removed in 1995 to create room, and because it had ceased to be used by the clergy. A wheel chair ramp was constructed in the spring of 1998, and solar panels were installed in August 2011.
Incumbents of St. Stephen the Martyr Anglican Church Thunder Bay include: the Rev. Benjamin Wood (January 1938 - October 1939), the Rev. Norman Post (January 1940 - January 1943), the Rev. Thomas Cann (January 1943 - January 1949), the Rev. Canon Stephen Turner (January 1949 - June 1952), the Rev. W. D. Pope (June 1952 - January 1954), the Rev. Lawrence Robertson (January 1954 - October 1958), the Rev. Bob Lumley (October 1958 - March 1967), the Rev. Canon Frank Moore (March 1967 - November 1982), the Rev. Murray Bradford (November 1982 - January 1984), the Rev. Mark Moote (May 1984 - March 1988), the Rev. Joan Mitchell (September 1990 to December 1993), and the Rev. Ed Swayze (April 1994 -)
Sources:
- St. Stephen the Martyr Anglican Church, http://www.ststephenanglican.com/History.html [accessed 2013 August, 16]
- "Consecration of St. Stephen's, Port Arthur," The Algoma Missionary News 27 (1931), no. 1: 10. Part of 2009-081/002 (003)
