The Brethren in Christ Church

Photo by Alan L Brown - August 22, 2004

Plaque Location

The Region of Niagara
The Town of Pelham
At a cemetery on the north side of Metler Road east of Effingham Street (County Road 32)

Plaque Text

A distinctive religious denomination similar in doctrine and practice to Mennonite assemblies, the Brethren in Christ Church emerged in Pennsylvania during the 1770s. It was established in Upper Canada in 1788 when Johannes Wenger (John Winger), who later became a bishop and Jacob Sider formed a congregation here in the Short Hills. The denomination advocated adult conversion and baptism and rejected secular pleasures, fashionable dress and political and military involvement. A small tightly knit religious group because of these strongly-held views, the Brethren in Christ Church grew slowly, drawing its members, popularly known as Tunkers, primarily from German-speaking rural communities. By the end of the 19th century however, it was firmly established in Welland, York, Waterloo and Simcoe Counties.

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