Hatfield Point Baptist Church
Hatfield Point, New Brunswick, CANADA

History of our Church

During and after the Revolutionary War, loyalists migrated into eastern Canada, including the St. John River valley. By the end of the 18th century, Captain Thomas Spragg had brought his family to the Belleisle Bay to settle. The early 1800's saw Baptists move into the area so these Church of England folk moved up the road to Springfield. Meanwhile, the Baptists began to meet outdoors (all year around) and in 1820 built their first meeting house. It was called the "First Springfield Calvinist Baptist Church," and later changed to "Hatfield Point Baptist Church."

Imagine a church staying true to the Gospel for almost 190 years! In 1857 the present structure was built, and, though it has undergone a number of renovations, it is still the "Little white church on Belleisle Bay," as in the words of the famous song, sung to the tune of the "Little Brown Church in the Vale."

There's a little Baptist church in Kings County
Where folks go to meet and they say,
"There's no lovelier spot for true worship
Than the little white church on the Bay.

When folk come to visit or vacation,
Then some want to sing and to pray,
And to hear a message from God's Holy Book
At the little white church on the Bay.

(Chorus)
Oh come, come, come, come...
Come to the church on Belleisle Bay
Oh, come to our church. If you will,
You will see there's no place quite so special
As the little white church on the hill.

(words by Andrew J. Swanson)

In the 1960's, the church withdrew from the Baptist Convention and became independent. The present pastor, James Swanson, is a graduate of Lawrence University (B.A.) and Temple Baptist Theological Seminary (M.R.E., M.Div.).

Hatfield point Baptist Church was the mother church to five other churches on the field at one time. Today, two of these buildings are gone, two others are vacant. Belleisle Creek Baptist Church remains on this field and shares the pastor with Hatfield Point. The morning service is at Hatfield Point, and the evening service is at Belleisle Creek.

When Dr. Paul Versluis, founder of Bibles International, visited the churches in 1987, he sat looking over the beautiful Belleisle Bay and sighed, "This is the loveliest spot in the world." We would invite you to come and see if you agree.!