A log church was first completed at this site in 1904 and named “The Congregation of the Greek Catholic Church at Beaver Lake in the District of Alberta in the North West Territories of Canada”. In 1908 the name was changed to “The Congregation of St. Dimitry Greek Catholic Church at Beaver Creek on the River” to include the patron saint, St. Demitry.
Although originally Ukrainian Catholic, “religious differences” in 1925 caused a reorganization and renaming as the “Ukrainian Orthodox Parish of St. Demetrius the Martyr” causing a some parishioners to split away and eventually build the “Descent of the Holy Spirit Ukrainian Catholic Church” nearby.
The present structure was built in 1939-40 “utilizing some of the logs and part of the foundation from the original church”.
The cemetery north of the church serves both the Ukrainian Orthodox and Ukrainian Catholic communities at Jaroslaw.
Source: “Lamont County’s Self-Guided Church Tours” booklet. Available online at: Lamont County Public Documents
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