Dugald is a community in the Rural Municipality of Springfield. It is 22 km (13 m) east of Winnipeg at the junction of Provincial Trunk Highway 15 and Provincial Road 206.
In the late 19th century the Presbyterians in the area met in each others’ homes for worship. The need for a designated place to worship was soon recognised. Construction of a church was begun in 1886. It was completed and in use by 1889. Some time later the Dugald Methodists joined the congregation.
Dugald United Church is built on a high foundation. It is not accessible to wheelchairs. Also inaccessible is the single washroom in the basement. The basement and vestibule were added in 1914.
Congregants from Dugald Methodist joined Dugald Presbyterian when the Methodist church closed in 1923. In 1925 Dugald Presbyterian formed a local Union and officially became Dugald United Church.
At one time the Dugald ministry was shared by three districts. In 2020 there were only two, Dugald and Oakbank.
In 1923 “the Dugald Pastoral charge also included Plympton and Oak Bank. Rev. W.M. Turnbull officiated. Millbrook joined the charge in 1953 and Hazelridge joined in 1955. In 1966, Plympton withdrew from the charge. The charge became known as Dugald-Oakbank in 1983. In 1994, the charge was split and Oakbank became its own pastoral charge, and Dugald and Anola became the Dugald-Anola Pastoral charge. At the time of description, Dugald continues to be a part of the Dugald-Anola Pastoral charge in Selkirk Presbytery.”
In 2010 the congregation and the Dugald Church Board decided it would be too expensive to upgrade the church to make it wheelchair accessible. The alternative was to find another location for church services.
With that in mind the decision was made to build a seniors’ housing complex with a chapel/common room designed for religious services. That would provide the aging congregation with homes close to the church. A resolution was passed to tap the Memorial Fund for the amount of the approximated value of the church. This would be for construction of a seniors’ housing complex that included a chapel for church services.
The 47-unit complex known as Dugald Estates was built at 800 Jaffray Street a few blocks east of the church. The first tenants moved in in December 2015. Services are now held in the room known as The Union Centre, for the use of which the church pays monthly. Services are shared with Oakbank United Church Pastoral Charge.
For seven years, from 2013, the church basement was rented to a community group running a before-and-after school program. That helped offset the costs of heating and maintenance. That group is moving out, though. Also, for while a faith group used the building on weekends. But they outgrew the chapel area and have moved elsewhere. So, rather than look for other tenants, the church is now for sale.
The final worship service in the Dugald United Church was on June 26, 2016.
• Photographed in
• Published in Senior Scope, February 10, 2021.