Norwood: A history of the Gospel Hall and Pine Street Centre – ThePeterboroughExaminer.com

Many of Norwoods older buildings started out being used or built to serve a completely different function than they do today.

Driving down Pine Street today, one could be forgiven for not noticing the house at No. 46; however, this unassuming building once hosted impressive revivals and faith services as The Norwood Gospel Hall. Many may also remember it when it was the The Pine Street Centre.

In 1931 and 1932 a group, affiliated with the Peterborough Gospel Hall, started to make regular visits to the village to hold open-air gospel services.

Within a couple of years their following had increased to the point where the group had pitched a large tent in the lot behind the Norwood Town Hall and conducted weekly meetings. In the years that followed rooms in various buildings and homes were used, some led by students from a Toronto Bible College.

By 1947 several new families had moved to the village and under the leadership of James Booker from the nearby community of Lang, interest had increased to the point where the Town Hall was rented to conduct both a Sunday morning and an evening service. Attendance at these services soon grew to a point where the congregation decided that a building of their own was warranted.

The lot of land at 46 Pine Street was donated to the cause by a couple from the congregation, a Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Stackhouse. The building was designed by Mr. Watson and construction progressed quickly with much of the labour performed by volunteers from the flock. The first official service in the chapel was held in the fall of 1948 led by James Booker (who had moved to the village by this time) and a George Pinches.

The building was clad on the outside with red artificial brick, a popular building material from the era made from a substance similar to modern day shingles. Inside the upper level housed the sanctuary with the traditional pulpit and rather than the usual long pews, the church used individual chairs for seating, on the lower level was a comfortable and spacious room and small kitchen area suitable for Sunday school and Bible study. The congregation remained strong for many years and at its peak there were more than 25 families attending worship services regularly.

In May of 1979 the Gospel Hall was sold to the Village of Norwood with the one stipulation that it could not be used for any purpose that does not honour God. The village councils original plan for the building was to convert it into a new medical centre, but the new medical centre was eventually built on King Street.

In the mid 1980s the village donated the building (for the sum of $1) to the Norwood Friendship Seniors Club for use as their meeting and events hall.

The name was changed to the Pine Street Centre and a new mission for the building began. The Seniors Club secured a $30,000 grant from New Horizons, a federal program dedicated to the health and welfare of seniors. Over the next few years the old building underwent a transformation. First, because of the buildings cathedral style ceilings it was found that the walls were slowly bowing outwards. This structural defect was quickly repaired by stringing metal cables across the span to reinforce and to pull the walls in straight again.

The exterior was covered in new vinyl siding, and a ramp was added. Inside, new lighting and fans were installed; a kitchen area was added upstairs, while the downstairs kitchen was remodelled, both upstairs and downstairs bathrooms were also given a facelift. A new commercial vinyl tile floor was installed on the upper level while the downstairs received new carpeting. A new furnace was installed and a central vacuum system was also fitted. Even the original Gospel Hall piano was refinished and tuned.

On April 21, 1990 The Seniors Friendship Club and Norwoods first Community Care Office opened its doors in the new Pine Street Centre. The ventre quickly became a hub of activity in the community hosting several weekly euchre games, afternoons of entertainment, bazaars, teas and so on.

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Community Care eventually outgrew the space and moved to Colborne Street and then to Maple View Retirement Centre where they remain today. The Norwood Historical Society moved into the space vacated by Community Care, allowing them to bring a considerable portion of their collection together in one spot for the first time. The Society also outgrew the space and following a couple of moves they now have their own dedicated home at the Historical Centre in the former Westwood Municipal building.

The village reassumed ownership of the centre around 2010. The building received a few upgrades, including a new roof and a new gas furnace. The centre was put up for sale in 2013 and is now a family home.

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Norwood: A history of the Gospel Hall and Pine Street Centre - ThePeterboroughExaminer.com