The Gur Sikh Temple (; also known as Abbotsford Sikh Temple), in Abbotsford,

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, is the oldest existing

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

gurdwara A gurdwara or gurudwara () is a place of assembly and place of worship, worship in Sikhism, but its normal meaning is "place of guru" or "home of guru". Sikhism, Sikhs also refer to gurdwaras as ''Gurdwara Sahib''. People from all faiths and rel ...

in North America and a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada () are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC), as being of national historic significance. Parks C ...

. It is the only gurdwara outside of India and Pakistan that is designated as national historic site. Though the oldest existing gurdwara on the continent, having opened in 1911, it is the third-oldest to be built in Canada and North America. The first Gurdwara in Canada was built by early

Sikh-Canadian Sikhism is the fourth-largest religion in Canada, with nearly 800,000 adherents, or 2.1% of Canada's population, as of 2021. The largest Sikh populations in Canada are found in Ontario, followed by British Columbia and Alberta. As of the 2021 ...

settlers in

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in 1905, which would later be destroyed by fire in 1926. Meanwhile, the second-oldest Gurdwara to be built in Canada opened in 1908 in

Kitsilano Kitsilano ( ) is a neighbourhood in the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Named after Squamish chief August Jack Khatsahlano, Kitsilano is located along the southern shore of English Bay, Vancouver, English Bay between Fairview, Vancou ...

(

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

), aimed at serving a growing number of Sikh settlers who worked at nearby sawmills along

False Creek False Creek () is a short narrow inlet in the heart of Vancouver, separating the Downtown Vancouver, Downtown and West End, Vancouver, West End list of neighbourhoods in Vancouver, neighbourhoods from the rest of the city. It is one of the four ...

at the time. It would later be closed and demolished in 1970, with the

temple society The German Templer Society, also known as Templers, is a Radical Pietist group that emerged in Germany during the mid-nineteenth century, the two founders, Christoph Hoffmann and Georg David Hardegg, arriving in Haifa, Palestine, in October 1868 ...

relocating to the newly built Gurdwara on Ross Street in South Vancouver.

History

The first Sikh pioneers came to the Abbotsford area in 1905 and originally worked on farms and in the

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

industry.() First plans to build a gurudwara were made in 1908. After a property situated on a hill was acquired, the settlers carried lumber from a local

mill Mill may refer to: Science and technology * Factory * Mill (grinding) * Milling (machining) * Millwork * Paper mill * Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel * Sugarcane mill * Textile mill * List of types of mill * Mill, the arithmetic ...

on their backs up a hill to construct the gurdwara. When the Gurdwara opened on February 26, 1911, Sikhs and non-Sikhs from across

attended the ceremony and a local newspaper reported on the event.Satwinder Bains
''Gur Sikh Temple'' (archived)
at canadiansikhheritage.ca (retrieved 7 April 2011) The temple was a two-floor building that from the outside looked like the contemporary wood houses often seen in local frontier towns. Features and decoration typical for Sikh architecture and design were only used in the interior. The first floor contains the

Langar Langar may refer to: Community eating *Langar (Sikhism) *Langar (Sufism) Places Afghanistan *Langar, Badakhshan, Afghanistan *Langar, Bamyan, Afghanistan *Langar, Faryab, Afghanistan *Langar, Herat, Afghanistan *Langar, Wardak, Afghanistan ...

and common dining room for the community, and the second floor contains the prayer hall. The building was extended twice in 1932 and in the 1960s. Until 1975 the Gurdwara belonged to the Khalsa Diwan Society Vancouver (founded in 1905), then it was transferred to the

Khalsa Diwan Society Abbotsford The term ''Khalsa'' refers to both a community that follows Sikhism as its religion,Khalsa: Sikhism< ...

, who wished for greater autonomy. In 1983, a new, much larger temple with a completely different architectural style was built on the opposite side of the road. The old temple was designated a National Historic Site in 2002, with the designation declared by Prime Minister

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at a ceremony on July 26. In 2007, the temple reopened after renovation. For 2011, a small museum in the basement was planned in connection with the temple's 100-year anniversary. To mark the centennial (1911-2011) of Gur Sikh Temple, Prime Minister

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. He is to date the only prime minister to have come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ser ...

inaugurated the Sikh Heritage Museum on the ground floor of the Temple. On May 19, 2017, Prime Minister

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau (born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of Canada from 2015 to 2025. He led the Liberal Party from 2013 until his resignation in 2025 and was the member of Parliament ...

visited the Canada 150 exhibit at the Sikh Heritage Museum.Kelvin Gawle
''Trudeau touts multiculturalism, acknowledges ‘black mark in our history’ at Abbotsford temple''
The Abbotsord News, 2017-05-19

Notes

References

*Rochelle Baker
''Abbotsford's Gur Sikh Temple celebrates 100 years''
. In ''Abbotsford Times'' of 2010-12-13
Canada's 100-Year-Old Temple
- report on

Al Jazeera English Al Jazeera English (AJE; , ) is a 24-hour English-language News broadcasting, news channel operating under Al Jazeera Media Network, which is funded by the government of Qatar. Al Jazeera introduced an English-language division in 2006. It is ...

(video,2:10 min.) *Satwinder Bains
''Gur Sikh Temple''
at canadiansikhheritage.ca

at canada.com on 2007-4-2

External links

* ttp://www.msamuseum.ca/index.php/general-information/35-indo-canadian-history-culture-and-religion/108-religion-1911-gurdwara-a-national-historic-site ''1911 Gurdwara: A National Historic Site''- some basic information and pictures on a website of the ''MSA Museum Society''
''Sikh Temples And Societies''
at ''abbotsfordtoday.com'' on 2009-4-1

- images on

Flickr Flickr ( ) is an image hosting service, image and Online video platform, video hosting service, as well as an online community, founded in Canada and headquartered in the United States. It was created by Ludicorp in 2004 and was previously a co ...

Sikh Gurdwara Launches Centennial Anniversary With Special Proclamation: 2011 Year of the Gurdwara''
*Douglas Todd
''B.C. Sikhs have had a long, hard road for 100 years''
. Website of ''The Vancouver Sun'', 2011-1-10 {{Coord, 49, 03, 04, N, 122, 18, 25, W, display=title Buildings and structures in Abbotsford, British Columbia Gurdwaras in British Columbia Sikhism in Canada Sikhism in North America Sikh places National Historic Sites in British Columbia Religious buildings and structures in British Columbia Religious buildings and structures on the National Historic Sites of Canada register 1908 establishments in British Columbia

History

Notes

See also

References

External links