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62 VICTORIA ST
Kensington,
Prince Edward Island
C0B 1M0
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Prince Edward Island Tourism Region : Green Gables Shore
Description From Owner:
- 7 mi NW of Kensington in Prince town Royalty. Formerly called Princetown, but Malpeque is noted as early as Curtis 1775.
- The townsite of Princetown was really 2 mi W, but it was never developed. P.O. Princetown 1827-1945; P.O. Malpeque from 1945.
Address of this page:
http://pei.ruralroutes.com/Malpeque
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Malpeque claims the distinction of having held continuous church services longer than any other congregation on the Island and has been called the Island's "Cradle of Presbyterianism."
French explorers built the first church at Malpeque in 1753. The continuous church services date to 1770 when a sailing vessel from Falmouth, Scotland anchored to seek shelter from a storm.
The crew was convened in a house where a church service was held. The first church building was constructed of logs in 1794 at Ellison's Brook, better known as Big Spring or Grog's Island because of a nearby tavern.
In 1810 it was to have been moved to MacGillvary's Corners, but bad weather halted the move at the site of the present-day church which was built in 1813. In 1870 a larger church was opened on the same site to accommodate 800 people. The Princeton United Church has been holding services in it since 1925.
With permission from 'Prince Edward Island Place Names' David E. Scott 2011
Rev. John Keir (1780-1858) came to PEI from Scotland as a missionary and in 1810 became the first protestant to be ordained on the island.
He organized the island's first presbytery and was its moderator in 1821. In 1843 he became the first Principal Professor of Theology at Presbyterian Divinity College, holding classes in his home until Pine Hall Divinity College was built later that year in Halifax.
The Keir Memorial Museum is in the former Keir Memorial Presbyterian Church at Malpeque, built in 1927 and closed in 1983.
The museum holds more than 1,000 artifacts relating to the community's history; everything from oyster-fishing implements to an 1887 "convertible" hearse. The body of the hearse could be removed from its wheels and transferred to a bobsled chassis for winter use.
With permission from 'Prince Edward Island Place Names' David E. Scott 2011
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