Stanley Mission was established in 1851. Six years earlier, the Hudson's Bay Company, which controlled Rupert's Land granted permission to the Missionary Society to establish a mission the English River District (Churchill). The site selected was on a point of land first called Church Mission Point, which later was known as Stanley Mission. The name of the mission was changed to honor Mrs. Hunt's home in England.

Construction began immediately under the supervision of the Reverend Robert Hunt, who had arrived at Lac La Ronge in 1850 to establish the mission. The first buildings constructed were the parsonage and the school house. A warehouse, storeroom, barn, icehouse and carpenter's shop followed. Construction of Holy Trinity Church did not happen until 1854. The building of the church was only one of Hunt's dreams. He was also instrumental in delivering the gospel to the Native people in the area. Due to the language barriers, Hunt was forced to improve and utilize the Cree syllabic system for the translation of religious texts.

The year 1864 marked a significant achievement for Stanley Mission. The Reverend John A. Mackay, a man of mixed blood was put in charge of the mission. He was instrumental in serving the Cree people of the area by translating the Prayer Book into Cree syllabics.

The development of Stanley Mission, which included the building of Holy Trinity Church was the vision of the Anglican Church through its missionary society. The society has already established a presence in Africa and South America when they began establishing missions in Rupert's Land.

By 1877, the year Mackay left, Stanley Mission became a thriving community providing a permanent home for several Indian families and a camp for a number of others. The Hudson's Bay Company had established a trading post on the opposite side of the river in 1853. Yet at that time, virtually all residents of the area lived on the north bank of the river.

This situation had changed by the beginning of the 20th century. The mission at Lac La Ronge was gaining greater importance, at the expense of Stanley Mission. By 1905, Lac La Ronge had replaced Stanley Mission as headquarters for the mission district. As time progressed, the community surrounding Holy Trinity Anglican Church on the north bank declined. Development had begun to move to the south bank of the Churchill around the Hudson's Bay Company trading post.

In 1920, 27 buildings still remained on the north bank, with only eleven on the south. As time passed an increasing number of Indian houses were built on the south bank on the newly created Indian reserve. By 1962, virtually all buildings were on the opposite bank to Holy Trinity Anglican Church. Today, the Stanley Mission settlement sits on the south shore of the Churchill River leaving Holy Trinity Church a lone sentinel on the opposite shore.

The importance of Holy Trinity Church to Stanley Mission is highlighted by its massiveness and the dominant position it held in the community. Situated on a high point of land at a bend in the river, it was a sight which would impress any new visitor to the area. The building itself showed the mixed influences of the English church architecture of the day, local Indian culture, and the natural environment.

Holy Trinity was a large church for the small community of Stanley Mission. The church itself measured 25 metres (67 feet) in length by 10.5 metres (35 feet) in width and had an inside height of 15 metres (42 feet). The steeple and spire in 1860 reached an impressive 27 metres (76 feet).

Extensive local materials were used in the construction of the church. Footings made of local stone supported floor boards made of local timber. Local timber was also used for the frame and for the interior and exterior board siding. Insulation between the walls consisted of moss and/or a mudstone mix. The original boards lasted until 1920, when they were repaired and the original roof was covered with wooden shingles.

The interior consisted of two single-storey aisles flanking the two-storey navel, with a chancel at one end and steeple at the other. A single oval window and 37 Gothic-arched windows allowed sunlight into the church. Over 1,000 pieces of stained glass were used in these windows. The roof was comprised of spans separated by arched ribs bearing acorn motifs.

The church was transferred to the Province of Saskatchewan in 1981 by the Anglican Diocese of Saskatchewan. Between 1982 and 1988 extensive repairs were undertaken through a cost sharing arrangement with the Governments of Saskatchewan and Canada. These repairs included replacing the foundation and select support beams, re-shingling with wooden shingles, restoring the stained glass windows, reconstructing the spire of the bell tower and re-installing a bell in the tower.

Today, Holy Trinity Anglican Church leads a double life. It continues to provide spiritual services to the Anglican congregation of the community. It also has been designated as a Provincial Heritage Property and a National Historic Site and is incorporated into the Lac La Ronge Provincial Park. The church is open at all times. Access is by water only.

Source: Sask. Environment and Resource Management Pamphlet