Knox Sixteen Church was originally built in 1845 by the Presbyterians of Trafalgar. Originally a wood frame structure measuring 40 feet long, 30 feet wide and 18 feet high, it was part of a progressive community. Village of the Sixteen had roots dating back before Oakville was founded. During the 1820’s, a bustling village was in existence where the Sixteen-Mile creek crosses Dundas St., and boasted a grist mill, saw mill, general store, a blacksmith shop and a distillery.
The small church became a regular meeting place for the farming community, where church services were previously held in somebody’s home and then later in a schoolhouse. Knox Sixteen was built on a ¼ acre of donated land and the adjacent lot was purchased for a cemetery.
The once thriving community disappeared during the 1870’s as Oakville was being developed, however, the local farmers continued to maintain their church. It was part of a two-point charge with Knox Presbyterian Church for 50 years to 1883. Hence the name Knox Sixteen.
The congregation was linked with St. Paul’s Church, Nelson, under the Hamilton Presbytery until 1934, when Knox Sixteen joined Streetsville, in the Presbytery of Toronto. This union lasted until 1968 when Knox Sixteen Church became independent.
The building was enlarged and bricked over in 1899, the interior redecorated in 1925, and electric lights were installed in 1943, one year before it’s centennial. In 1994 a basement was added beneath the original structure, thereby giving the church much needed room for Sunday school classes, church meetings, luncheons, a kitchen, and washroom facilities.
The old country atmosphere remains. Knox Sixteen is a welcome sanctuary from the busy fast-paced world in which we live.