St. Michael’s Ukrainian Catholic Church and Cemetery

Ukrainian pioneers settled this area in the late 1890s. The first church was built in 1901-1902 but was soon destroyed by fire. The present church was erected on the original site in 1904 and includes the Parish cemetery. The original owners of the building were the Greek Orthodox Church but it was turned over to the Ukrainian Catholic Church in 1917.

St. Michael’s church is constructed of logs and covered with six-inch siding. It retains its original ceilings of four-inch wide boards painted blue with a scattering of gold stars. Floral motifs around the inside of the walls and windows were painted by visiting Belgian priests. During this period of settlement there was a shortage of Ukrainian priests to serve the population. The Belgian priests may have stayed with local families while serving the congregation.

A cairn near the cemetery, erected in 1978, lists the names of people who originally settled in the Willow Creek area, starting in 1896. To the south of the cemetery is a small plaque commemorating the site of the St. Michael’s Ukrainian Independent Orthodox Church and Cemetery, located 300 meters south of the marker. It was erected in 2004 by the Very Rev. John A. Melnyk of Winnipeg, formerly of Fraserwood.

The church became a municipally-designated historic site in 2003. On its grounds is a monument, erected in 1978, that lists the names of people who settled in the Willow Creek area from 1896.

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Photo: Gordon Goldsborough