Situated in the town of Uxbridge, about 90 minutes northeast of Toronto, there are two churches which sit less than 100 metres from each other on opposite sides of the street.

Both are heritage buildings with a long history in the community.

While St Paul’s looks more prosperous than its neighbour across the street, both immediately appealed to me.
They both have note-worthy doors, although St Andrew’s gets a special nod for having an entrance on the corner of a wedge. That alone demanded that I stop for a closer look. Well that, and their small bell tower that no longer holds a bell.
Not to be outdone, St Paul’s actually opened her doors to allow me a peek inside when the custodian found me lurking outside taking photos.

Rich in history – with apparently a wealthy congregation – the stained glass windows of St Paul’s lit up the interior in soft light.

Incredibly I was even given access to the private lounge which was also bathed in coloured light.
However, sadly I wasn’t given access to the tower.
So I’m withholding my vote in the battle of these 2 churches just in case St Andrew’s/ Chalmers comes back to offer me a tour of their tower. That would be a game changer.
Thursday Doors is a weekly photo feature hosted by Norm Frampton at Norm 2.0.
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All photos were taken in the summer of 2017 while I was in the Uxbridge area hiking on the Trans-Canada Trail.
Joanne Sisco,thanks so much for the post.Really thank you! Keep writing.
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You’re welcome 😊 … and thank you!
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Amazing finds Joanne. I just can’t choose. They both have awesome qualities, but are quite different.
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Thanks Amy. Those were my thoughts exactly. Why choose? 🙂
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Both have their pluses — but the St Andrew’s door wins for me 🙂
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I love this door too. It’s so close to the sidewalk, it almost begs you to come in and visit … which now makes me think I need to be a bit bolder. I assumed that door was locked. In the future, I need to start checking! I may find more open doors than I realize.
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Handsome churches with two different but beautiful doors. 🙂
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Thanks Judy. I had been trying for a while to figure out how to feature these churches. In the end, the comparison felt a bit clunky but I ran with it anyway.
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Don’t know how I missed your Thursday post! Love especially the door on the corner. Every time I see stained glass I promise myself to learn it, but it’s expensive! Also love the last capture – somehow it gives a “daily” impression – that’s how it should be:)
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I too have thought I would like to learn how to do stained glass, but I suspect I would end up with more burns, scars, and scabs on my hands than actually usable art work.
A few years ago I discovered an artist who does amazing work intended for the outdoors. I have a great love for outdoor art and covet some of his work for my backyard.
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These are wonderful doors, Joanne. what a thrill to be invited inside. I love the door of St Andrew’s on that wedge.
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I suspected you would. We both love a corner entrance 🙂
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Well, what you were able to see certainly is lovely!
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Thanks Marissa 🙂
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Blackmailing a church is probably not such a good idea! Remember, Norm doesn’t provide legal aid services…. ; )
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{gasp} I would never! 😉
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I like the St Paul’s doors more, but I like the quirky tower on St Andrew’s. It doesn’t look that old though – must wear well.
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Compared to your world, no, not that old at all. In our world, the mid-1800s is quite old.
I agree about the quirky little tower – in fact, I thought the entire building was a little different.
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I love the stained glass window photos and the colors of them. Amazing how much they can brighten up and enrich a place. Thanks for the interesting description and comparison.
Peta
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Thanks Peta. I have one particular window in my house that I would love to replace with stained glass. Some day I’m going to find the right piece – or I’ll simply bite the bullet and commission a piece 🙂
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More lurking, which seems to pay off! So pretty, Joanne. I love the old doors of St. Andrew’s, but I like the way the light comes through St. Paul’s doors. And beautiful stained glass windows. Thanks for the tour and I hope you get up in the bell tower!
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Someday my lurking will pay off and I’ll get that elusive tower tour 😉
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I love the windows, and the light pattern they make on the lounge carpet. Teen ally, I prefer St Paul’s.
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It’s pretty hard to compete with stained glass 🙂
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Great pictures, I love how stained glass lights up a room. We go to Uxbridge all the time. The prices for homes has risen so much these past few years. Everyone wants to live there now! So close to Newmarket but still a small town feeling. The best of both worlds. I remember so much of it being fields when I was young. Not so much now, it is booming! The library would make some great photos too!
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The library is a lovely building and sadly all my photos were terrible. The challenge of visiting in the middle of the day when it is bright sunshine outside.
It seems that house prices in Toronto have put a lot of upward pressure on prices in all the communities around it. Uxbridge is no exception. I was looking at house prices there and was shocked.
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I can’t believe the prices in Toronto. One guy we met said his land tax was ten thousand a year! Must be nice to have that spare money to afford it. 🙂
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That’s a much bigger bite than my taxes – although my house is pretty modest.
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The doors in both buildings are worth a shot but the windows really got my attention and I hope that’s alright. I was forced to go to church when I was a child and often focused on the windows, wondering what the world behind it was doing at that very moment. Stained glass can have a little girls imagination run wild.
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Interesting – I got your comment twice … once as ‘someone’.
You and I would have made good company together in church 😉
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The doors in both buildings are worth a shot but the windows really got my attention and I hope that’s alright. I was forced to go to church when I was a child and often focused on the windows, wondering what the world behind it was doing at that very moment. Stained glass can have a little girls imagination run wild.
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There’s something special about stained glass … especially when the light shines through. Yes, I remember many masses I was forced to attend. So many things to be distracted by!!
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Oh, I hope that St Andrew’s does let you in for a visit! I wonder if someone there is reading this post!
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Wouldn’t that be cool?! 🙂
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They’re both lovely with great doors. How wonderful that St. Paul’s let you in and at a time when the sun was shining and showing off those gorgeous stained glass windows too!
What a treat!
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It truly was. I literally gasped when I walked into the lounge and saw the way it was lit up from the stained glass.
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So nice that he let you in to have a look around. I’m a big fan of the stained glass. I have to say that I prefer the doors on St. Paul’s but the best thing is, we don’t have to pick a favourite; both can be enjoyed for what they are.
Nicely done 🙂
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So true. I like St Paul’s, but there’s something special about St Andrew’s. I hope I get another chance to visit it.
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My thought: If religion had it “right” . . . there would be one church, not two. 😀
But the doors are lovely.
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I absolutely agree.
… and if religion could it ‘right’, millions and millions of dollars wouldn’t have been spent on churches, but instead on the welfare of its community.
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These are beautiful images Joanne and the light in the lounge is gorgeous 🙂
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Thanks Joe. There was a lot of ooo’ing and ahhhh’ing when I walked in the lounge 🙂
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😀
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Thanks for the post. You have piqued my interest in looking at doors more carefully. Might even go up for a drive since Uxbridge is not that far away from me!
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I ‘discovered’ Uxbridge last summer and was rather smitten by this community. If you like hiking or cycling, it is well known for its extensive trail system.
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Love your last line, Joanne – and the photos. I’ve seen those churches in Uxbridge, but didn’t pay any attention. Thanks for getting me to notice (my word of the year).
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I found Uxbridge to be a charming little town. This is the kind of place I could happily live if I could drag my husband out of the city 😉
I thought I had pretty good powers of observation until I spent a few hours with another blogger downtown earlier this week. Her ability to notice details was AMAZING.
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The doors with the Meeting Rooms sign call to me. I want to go through them, I want to meet someone. Uxbridge looks like a charming place.
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Uxbridge oozes charm and all the people we encountered while there were so friendly – one of the nicest communities I’ve been to.
I agree about that door. There is something about this little church that makes me believe there is more than meets the eye here.
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They are both beautiful and I’m sure there are a lot of stories to be told from both of them. I do like the placement of St. Andrew’s – it adds a special character.
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There is something very special about St Andrew’s that I just can’t put my finger on. The placement of the door on the corner is certainly a part of it.
In addition to cycling trails, there are many golf courses in this area, so I’m sure I’ll be back up that way again.
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Both lovely buildings. I’m impressed that you got inside!! I actually had to attend a service at the church I was interested in architecturally in order to get “the tour.”
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What a great strategy! Duh – I hadn’t thought of that.
I have been lucky with timing on a few occasions. To be there when a custodian is around is very helpful 🙂
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😀 I was writing as essay about the church for a design history class I’d taken and needed to take photos, etc. So I went to a service, got talking to the Minister and got myself a one on one tour. I wanted access to the archive too — which I got. A lot of our larger churches here are open a lot of time anyway; people are invited to go in and pray, think, whatever. But I guess the smaller ones lock the doors to stop thieves and vandals. ☹️
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Lucky you for the personal tour! 🙂
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How nice that they let you in like that, Joanne. The windows are gorgeous. I enjoyed your fun description. Hugs!
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I’m surprised at how often I’m invited in to see a building when I’m noticed outside taking photos – only in small towns though. It’s never happened in the city.
You have to love small towns!
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John Anne do you know if there is any true history of battling or have the lovely buildings and their congregations lived peacefully as neighbours for all this time? Love the stained glass and the fact that you were allowed in. Too bad about the tower. Might have made good climbing!
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LOL – no I’m not aware of any battling going on. I was just comparing 2 very different buildings within a stone’s throw of each other 🙂
It is such a friendly community, I can’t imagine any feuding!
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Beautiful, in my view. The colorful light in those churches seems to rival what I’ve seen in casinos. But maybe both types of institutions are offering a gamble to their patrons.
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My exposure to casinos has been very limited, but given my cynical view of religion, I’m going to resist the urge to compare them 🙂
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So much in common, yet so much their own identity. How interesting.
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After a while, churches all start to blur together in my head, however these 2 stuck out because of their proximity to each other and how different they appeared. Ultimately, I suspect they aren’t really so different 🙂
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Battle of the saints, indeed! Access to the private lounge? You must have had a saintly aura that day, Joanne. The photos are wonderful. There is something about the old churches and stained glass windows….so pretty.
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Saintly aura indeed!! It was almost embarrassing, Lois. Helen and I were dressed for hiking, and we were sweaty and more than a little trail-worn.
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Wow, you have the nack for getting invited inside, don’t you!? Beautiful doors and windows. I’m pretty sure you’ll be receiving a call from St. Andrews offering you a tower tour.
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It seemed that for a while I was having great luck getting invitations to visit. Nothing beats being in the right place at the right time!
Sadly, it doesn’t work so well in the city.
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