Local Wonder - Tourist Trap
The extraordinary ruins of this church recall the early history of Roman Catholicism in Upper Canada. Began in 1815, St. Raphael’s Church originally served as the centre of the colony’s largest and most important parish and the administrative headquarters for the first Roman Catholic Bishop, Alexander MacDonell.
Situated in the heart of a historic Highland settlement, the parish was the cradle of Catholicism in Ontario. The ruins left standing after the fire in 1970 serve as a testament to Bishop MacDonell’s determined efforts to forward the interests of his faith.
