97th Street Hall, Edmonton, AB

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[edit] History

J.J. Rouse ministered in Edmonton in the years 1903 to 1905. His biography mentions that an assembly of about 30 people commenced in that city in 1905. This may be the earliest assembly in Alberta. In the early 1900s, four assemblies came into being in Edmonton – Boyle Street Assembly, Edmonton, AB , Norwood Assembly, Edmonton, AB , 97th Street Hall, Edmonton, AB , and the YMCA Assembly, Edmonton, AB . The latter met at the YMCA under the leadership of Mr. Tom Cooper.

The Norwood Assembly, Edmonton, AB was begun around 1926 by William Cummings along with several others including J. Thompson, S. McCaughey, and A. Tandy. It was a store-front operation in an old building and about 40 in fellowship. The Norwood, Boyle Street, YMCA, and 97th Street assemblies had little interaction with one another. However, in October 1933, a young man from Vancouver – Albert McLaren – began to hold Gospel services nightly in the 97th Street Hall; there were many conversions and William Cummings heard about it. He took his four sons to those meetings and they were all converted at that time. William Cummings had vowed to the Lord that wherever his boys were saved, there he would fellowship. When he broke this news to the Christians at Norwood, they said ‘if you go, we all go,’ with the result that in a matter of a few months all of the Edmonton assemblies merged at the 97th Street Hall, with approximately 125 in fellowship at the time. Some of the surnames of the brethren from these early days were Gregory, Herbert, Magee, Majas, Maskell, Rutley, Smalley, Stephenson, Sydney, Twittey, and Willoughby.

Most of the converts at the McLaren campaign were young people (about 75) and for several years things went well at the 97th Street Hall, with lots of activity. In different parts of the city people opened their homes for children’s services – Richard and Rose McCullough and the John Sutherlands in the north end, and Archie Gibson and his wife in the west end – and these fed young people into the assembly. About 200 were in the assembly at its peak, and yearly conferences were well attended by people from outlying areas.

In the early 1940s, some of the younger people at 97th Street Hall began a Sunday School in the Norwood area of Edmonton in a rented Masonic hall. This grew to the point that in 1945 plans were made to erect a suitable building in the area. S. McCaughey donated a corner lot at 95 Street and 115 Avenue. The children’s work moved into it, and a Sunday evening Gospel service was started. This was the beginning of Bethel Gospel Chapel, Edmonton, AB.

The building was used for a year or more before the assembly there was formed in about July 1947. The people who contributed to the building and became the first elders were Ben Finch, Eric Greenhalgh, George Smyth, Louis Mix, Jim McMahon, Cy Blair, George Paul, Sam McCaughey, William Cummings, and Stan Cummings.

Within about 15 years two additions were made to the building and it was the hub of many activities. The number of members at Bethel never exceeded about 200, partly because several other assemblies hived off from it as the city grew.

In 1959, the 97th Street Hall was sold and the remaining flock migrated to Bethel Gospel Chapel and to Conner’s Hill Gospel Hall, Edmonton, AB, where Alston King has been a leading brother.