N.S. church wins $50,000 prize from Canada’s Next Great Save

Ancienne Église Sainte-Marie, in Church Point, N.S., is pictured. (Source: National Trust for Canada)

The Ancienne Église Sainte-Marie in Church Point, N.S., has won the top prize in Canada’s Next Great Save, taking home $50,000 for restoration work.

The church, which opened its doors in 1905, was one of 12 historic spots to make the finals of the Next Great Save, a competition that offers funding to renew heritage sites. Sainte-Marie beat out fellow Nova Scotia site Trinity Anglican Church in Digby to come in first place.

The Spire in Kingston, Ont., and the Backhouse Grist Mill in Port Rowan, Ont., came in second and third place, respectively.

Sainte-Marie, which is believed to be the largest wooden church in North America, will use the $50,000 prize to restore its steeple and the bells’ chimes.

The Association Sainte-Marie héritage et développement, which formed in late 2024, has championed the site and worked on a plan to preserve it.

The site was slated to face the wrecking ball at one point, but last fall it maintained its heritage designation under the Nova Scotia Heritage Property Act, which protected it from demolition.

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