Parkview Free Methodist Church

The Parkview Free Methodist Church opened in 1961, but its origins go back to 1898, the year the Holiness Movement Church assigned Rev. G.A. Christie with the task of establishing a mission in the vicinity of Renfrew. Rev. Christie’s labours bore fruit in 1899 when a church, Beulah Chapel, opened in nearby Admaston, on property donated by a local resident.

In 1958, the Holiness Movement Church made the decision to merge with the Free Methodist Church in Canada, the merger coming into effect on January 1, 1959. Following the merger, the Admaston congregation, which had worshipped in the same church for roughly 60 years, decided to relocate to Renfrew.

Over two hundred people were present for the new church’s opening on May 21, 1961. Located at 563 King St., the church featured a laminated arch sanctuary 56 feet by 30 feet and was able to seat 150 people. (It also had its own Sunday School auditorium.) The following year, on March 25, Bishop L.R. Marton officially dedicated the Parkview Free Methodist Church.

On May 5, 1991, the Parkview Free Methodist Church celebrated its thirtieth anniversary. By that time, the congregation had known six pastors: Rev. Gordon A. Hammond (1956-1962), Rev. Donald W. Eyre (1962-1970), Rev. Austin J. Thaxter (1970-1981), Rev. Lloyd R. Eyre (1981-1984), Rev. Craig Peters (1984-1989), and Rev. Michael Hogeboom, who became pastor in 1989. The church closed on July 6, 2014.