Steeple from former Bethany Motherhouse Chapel, crowning a reflective pool in the Bethany Centennial Gardens

Architecture
Bell tower
Buildings
Fountain
Nova Scotia -- Antigonish County
Spire
Steeple and steeple components

Built from 1962 to 1963, the steeple stood atop the Sisters of St. Martha’s Motherhouse Chapel for more than 50 years, sheltering the bell and serving as a hillside symbol of hope. Its construction, paired with a new chapel and wing, marked a period of immense growth in the size of the congregation.
Composed of a steel frame and clad in copper, the steeple is topped with a stainless-steel crucifix. This crucifix was a modern addition, replacing the original gold-leaf cross that was damaged during a storm in 2005.
When the Motherhouse was deconstructed, from 2018 to 2019, the remaining grounds were transformed into the Bethany Centennial Gardens. The steeple was then installed amid the garden. Refurbished, it now surmounts a granite and concrete reflective pool, and rests upon a weathered-steel base, bearing the inscriptions of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Martha’s “CSM” symbol, and a quotation from previous Chapters’ Directional Statements, “standing together in undaunted hope”. Still skimming the hillside, the steeple provides a peaceful place for contemplation and continues to be a visible symbol of the Marthas’ presence and faith.

Patrick Keenleyside
Architect from the firm Govan Kaminker Langley Keenleyside Melick Devonshire & Wilson

Congregation of the Sisters of St. Martha, Antigonish Nova Scotia. Photographs provided by CSM Communications Coordinator and CSM Archives.

Congregation of the Sisters of St. Martha, Antigonish Nova Scotia.

1962-1963, original construction
2020-2022, installation at Bethany Centennial Garden

Online access is provided for research purposes only. Permission for reproduction or use requests must be obtained. Please contact: CSM Archives, Congregation of the Sisters of St. Martha, 75 Marian Drive, Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada, B2G 2G6.
This permission is valid only insofar as CSM Archives, as owner or custodian, has any rights in the matter and does not remove the responsibility of the author, editor, and publisher to guard against the infringement of any rights, including copyright, that may be held by others.

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Copper, steel, weathered-steel, granite, and cement

English

Physical Object

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1962-2022
Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada

Coordinates:
Lat: 45 39 00 N degrees minutes Lat: 45.6500 decimal degrees
Long: 062 00 00 W degrees minutes Long: -62.0000 decimal degrees