Discover Eastville: Church, Schoolhouse and Cemetery

Eastville tells different chapters of local history through three named places: Springside United Church, Eastville Schoolhouse and Eastville Cemetery. Their development encompasses the construction and dedication of a church, the structural alteration of a schoolhouse, and the transformation of a family cemetery into a community cemetery. If you enjoy learning about historic places through specific dates and changes, you can compare different aspects of local history here.

Springside United Church: Construction History and Preservation

Springside United Church was built by John Crockett in 1857. It opened in 1858 and was dedicated in February 1859. Construction, opening and dedication thus took place in three consecutive years; together, the dates provide a precisely defined glimpse into its early history. The construction history unfolds over several milestones rather than a single date.

When it closed on September 30, 2019, it was considered the oldest church building in the Stewiacke Valley. In Eastville, Springside United Church is a municipal heritage property. More than 160 years passed between its construction in 1857 and its closure, giving the church a long span of local history.

In January 2020, the Springside Community Centre Association acquired the former church and the adjacent hall. Its mandate covers preserving the heritage buildings and operating an independent community centre. The acquisition and mandate extend the story beyond the church’s former function to the themes of preservation and community operations.

Eastville Schoolhouse: Style, Relocation and Current Use

Eastville Schoolhouse was built in 1876 in the Classic Greek Revival style. The year of construction and the style designation complement one another: one places the building in time, while the other identifies its architectural classification. In the late 1940s, it was moved 50 to 75 feet onto a concrete-block foundation. Around seven decades passed between its construction and relocation, making the move a later chapter in the building’s history.

The relocation changed the site, while the exterior remained largely original, with the exception of the steel roof. Today, the schoolhouse is used as a community centre. The move, the preserved exterior and its current use thus stand side by side as three distinct layers of time.

Eastville Cemetery: From Family Cemetery to Community Cemetery

Eastville Cemetery began in 1856 as a family cemetery on part of Charles Cox’s farm in Upper Stewiacke. It developed from a family cemetery into a community cemetery. Here, the focus is not the development of a building, but the changing function of the cemetery: its beginnings as a family cemetery and its later development into a community cemetery form two clearly distinct stages. The cemetery’s history thus complements the construction histories of the church and schoolhouse with a different perspective on how community places change.

Eastville as a Heritage Destination

When choosing a vacation rental, your shared travel interests can be the deciding factor. If you are interested in construction and architectural history, the schoolhouse’s style and later relocation offer a different focus from the sequence of dates associated with the church. Eastville Cemetery, in turn, represents the shift from a family to a community function. If you are traveling together, you can consider which of these local histories interests you most and whether Eastville’s heritage focus suits your travel plans.

Discover more destinations: Truro, Alton, Great Village, Riverside, Upper Stewiacke, Five Islands, Brookfield, Shubenacadie East.

For the broader travel overview: Colchester County.