Grace Anglican Parish Curch and Cemetery

The beautiful stone building of Grace Anglican Church stands adjacent to an equally beautiful and well-kept cemetery. This land, located on the north side of the Village of Waterdown, was a generous donation of Frederick Feilde and his wife Elizabeth Gildart Campbell in 1847. Feilde had served in the Napoleonic Wars with his father Captain James Feilde, and his brother Fulford Feilde. The two sons came to Canada during the 1830s as half-pay officers, settling in Upper Canada. The land donated for a church, cemetery, and rectory was originally purchased from Absolom Griffin and his wife Harriet Smith.

The Anglican Church in Waterdown had a magnificent beginning under the inspiration and leadership of Rev. George Noel Higgison who was ordained to take care of the parish in the early years of the church. Even though land was available for a church in 1847, funds were not sufficient enough to erect a church building until 1860. Prior to this, worship services were held by Rev. A.P. Morris in the Township Hall. Only five years after the church was completed, an expansion was necessary due to a growing congregation. In the same year the parish came under the guidance of Rev. H. Stringfellow, a southern refugee during the American War whose eloquent speaking skills attracted large crowds.

Among the over 300 headstones in the Anglican Cemetery lie many well known men and women who took an active role in the undertakings of the early church. John Nicholson and James E. Eager , who were both delegates of the Synod and active promoters of the building operations, and Mrs. Annie E. Vance, the first President of the Grace Anglican Church lie interred here. The earliest recorded burial on a monument is that of Alexina C. Feilde, a child buried 10 September 1847. The Church record book holds numerous other dates including the first baptism on 20 June 1858, and the first marriage on 14 August 1859.

Today the cemetery is under the management of the Grace Anglican Cemetery Board. A plan of the cemetery and records of baptisms, marriages, and confirmations dating from 1858 are kept in the Church office. The parchment deed of the generous Feilde donation is held in the vault of the Synod office in Hamilton. Today the cemetery is still in use as a peaceful resting ground for past friends and family.