1. The Statement of Significance: Format and Content
Burnaby, British Columbia
3 June 2004

2. What is the purpose of the Description of Historic Place?
To help people understand:
The general character, extent and principal resources of the historic place
What has been formally recognized (and, if appropriate, what is not part of the formally-recognized place)
The place in its greater context

3. What Should Be Included in the Description of Historic Place?
2-3 sentences of information
Major resources that contribute to the heritage value (eg. buildings, landscapes, archaeological sites, structures)
General character of the place (eg. landscape patterns, scale, date of construction or origin, style, etc.)
Relationship of the place to its broader setting
May identify resources that fall outside the boundaries of the formally-recognized place – but this should be explained.

4. Is this a good Description of Historic Place?
Old Hay Bay Church was built in 1792 as a classic meeting house. It was enlarged in 1835, at which time its short walls were extended by 15 feet and its roof was rebuilt and turned 90 degrees. The building underwent subsequent alterations in 1912, with the installation of a new pulpit and new pews. Since then, the exterior of the meeting house has been re-clad and the entrance reconstructed.

5. Is this a good Description of Historic Place?
Old Hay Bay Church National Historic Site of Canada consists of a simple, clapboard structure, situated on a two-acre, rural property that includes a graveyard and a country road. The designation applies to both the building and the surrounding property.

6. What do we mean by heritage value?
Heritage value may be defined as: the aesthetic, historic, scientific, cultural, social or spiritual importance or significance for past, present or future generations. The heritage value of a historic place is embodied in its character-defining materials, forms, location, spatial configurations, uses, and cultural associations or meanings.

7. Categories of Heritage Value and Qualifiers
Aesthetic (style, materials, functional design)
Historic (theme, associations)
Scientific (information)
Social (tradition, symbol, place attachment)
Spiritual (religion, myth, ceremony)
Qualifiers:
Age
Rarity
Uniqueness
Representativeness
Excellence
Authenticity /
Integrity

8. Issues related to heritage value:
Heritage values are subjective
Different individuals/groups will value (or not value) historic places differently
Heritage values may conflict
Heritage values will change over time
Heritage values may be relevant at different levels: international, national, provincial/territorial, local

9. Why is there a Heritage Value section?
Most important section of the Statement of Significance
Explains to a broad audience why the historic place has been formally recognized
Clearly identifies the core heritage values of the historic place
Guides the identification of character-defining elements

10. What Should Be Included in the Heritage Value section?
2-3 paragraphs of information, describing the core heritage values of the historic place
First sentence of each paragraph/value statement should summarize the value being presented; additional information should only be provided when it supports or clarifies the value statement
Emphasis should be on the principal area of value, however all values identified during the evaluation should be identified
Information provided must pass the “So what?” test.

11. Is This a Good Heritage Value section?
Old Hay Bay Church was built in Enlarged in it was used for worship until about 1860 after which it served as a farmer's storehouse. In 1910 it was reacquired and restored by The Methodist Church and is still used for annual services by The United Church of Canada.

12. Is This a Good Heritage Value Section?
Old Hay Bay Church is the oldest surviving Methodist building in Upper Canada and remains a site of great symbolic importance to the United Church of Canada.
Built in 1792 by United Empire Loyalists, the church recalls the pioneer days of settlement. Stationed on the earliest Methodist itinerant circuit, its site was the location of the first camp meeting in Upper Canada in 1805.

13. What are Character-Defining Elements?
Character-defining elements are: the materials, forms, location, spatial configurations, uses, and cultural associations or meanings that contribute to the heritage value of the historic place, and which must be retained in order to preserve its heritage value.

14. Character-Defining Elements may be found in:
The style, scale, massing or composition of the place
Features related to the function of the place
The interior spatial configuration or exterior layout of the place
The materials and craftsmanship of the place

15. Character-Defining Elements may be found in: (con’t)
The relationship between the historic place and its broader setting
Traditional activities that continue to occur at the historic place
Cultural associations or meanings that continue to be associated with the historic place.

16. Why is there a Character-Defining Elements section ?
Character-Defining Elements give concrete or discernible form to a place’s heritage value
Signals to property owners, planners, architects and others involved in conserving or rehabilitating a historic place, what features should be protected
Helps guide the preparation of project proposals for CHPIF and their evaluation
May guide the choice of conservation treatment (preservation, rehabilitation, restoration).

17. What Should Be Included in the Character-Defining Elements section?
Each character-defining element must relate directly to the heritage value(s) identified in the previous section
Should identify general characteristics vs. individual elements
May be tangible and/or intangible features
May describe the relationship between the historic place and its broader context or setting
Individual character-defining elements should be listed in bullet format.

18. Is This a Good Character-Defining Elements section?
Old Hay Bay Church is a simple gable-roofed structure. Its symmetrical façade features a central door flanked by double-hung windows, and three evenly-spaced windows on the second storey. The building was constructed with a heavy timber frame and clad in wood siding. The Old Hay Bay Church interior includes a 1912 pulpit modeled after one in the nearby Conger Meeting House, and pews of the same date.

19. Is This a Good Character-Defining Elements section?
Meeting-house form, as illustrated by the:
basic box-like shape of the building
gable roof
large window openings
simple interior plan
Wood construction
Ongoing relationship between congregation and place
Property’s remote, rural setting.