Architecture

The designs of the building came from the architect David Stirling. Born in Galashiels, Scotland, David Stirling immigrated to North America in the mid-1840s at the age of 25. He designed buildings from St. John's to Toronto, and by the time he settled in Halifax in 1862, he was known as one of the most important architects in the country. Other than Fort Massey, he designed other significant public structures such as the Halifax Club, the Old Post Office (now Art Gallery of Nova Scotia), Grafton Street Methodist Church (now St. David's) and Convocation Hall at King's College in Windsor.

Stirling created Fort Massey in a specially designed Gothic style. There are more than a dozen window shapes and sizes, and numerous versions of decorative window tracery. Inside, there are richly-carved ceiling braces supported by hammer-beams, ornamental kings' heads and bands of trefoil arches punctuated by protruding, small winged creatures which gaze down into the nave below.

To add to the authenticity of the whole Gothic ensemble, Stirling himself designed the furnishings. This indeed was a rare occurrence. Original, architect-designed furniture was usually found only in architecturally sophisticated public buildings and estate houses. The pews have scrolled sides, with oversized ornate caps atop attached colonnettes. In front of the pews, there is the unique, lacy ironwork of the Gothic screen.

The organ in Fort Massey was built in 1913 by Casavant Frères, a world-famous organ-building company from Quebec. It was voiced by Claver Casavant (one of two brothers who founded the world-famous firm) in the "Romantic-Symphonic" style favoured at the time, and kept these characteristics when a new console with electric action was installed in 1951. It retains the original layout, pipes and windchests, and unlike many other instruments of its type, it was not later modified to comply with a prevailing fashion for baroque sounds. Significant restoration was recently completed in 2014 by Jean-François Mailhot, a builder sympathetic to the original style.

The organ contains about 2000 pipes, distributed over 3 keyboards (or manuals) plus a pedalboard of 32 notes. The pipes range in length from over 16ft to 3/4 inch (5m to 20mm). Pipes for two of the four divisions are in "swell" boxes with shutters to control the volume, but those of the Pedal and "Great" divisions are in the open and produce a bolder sound.

The name of the church, Fort Massey, comes from the history of what was here before it. Between the years 1776 and 1778, there was a fort, 115 feet above sea level, on what was then known as Windmill Hill. That area today would be here at the current intersection of Queen and South Streets. General Eyre Massey was the commander-in-chief at the time. The barracks and guardhouse were demolished in 1815, and fifty-five years later (1870), the cornerstone of Fort Massey Church was laid on June 25, and the church was officially opened almost a year and a half later on December 10, 1871.

A large portion of the construction costs were raised by means of a "subscription list," which was common with many churches built in the Victorian era. The contributors or "subscribers" were people who believed in the importance and necessity of building Fort Massey and were responsible for achieving its construction.

The original subscribers included many notable figures including politicians such as Hiram Blanchard, Premier of Nova Scotia in 1867; William Garvie, Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and Commissioner of Public Works; and Sir Robert Boak, President of the Legislative Council, President of the Union Bank; Andrew Muir, and Captain J. Taylor Wood, grandson of American President Zachary Taylor. Some other notable people who spent time at Fort Massey over the years include Lucy Maud Montgomery, the author of Green Gables, a worldwide best seller, translated in over 36 languages and has sold more than 50 million copies. Along with Anna Leonowens, an educator, author and lecturer who became famous as the British governess to the wives and children of King Mongkut (Rama IV) of Siam (now Thailand) in the 1860s.