The Brethren in Christ were a sect who drew their membership from Old Older Mennonites, Church of the Brethren, and Lutherans of Pennsylvania Dutch stock. They arrived in the Short Hills in the late 1700s, probably from Lancaster County in Pennsylvania, in search of arable land to establish their farms and communities, and many settled here in Niagara and in the Kitchener-Waterloo region of Ontario. A plaque on the site reads,

“A distinctive religious denomination similar in doctrine and practice to Mennonite assemblies, the Brethren in Christ Church emerged in Pennsylvania during the 1770s. It was established in Upper Canada in 1788 when Johannes Wenger (John Winger), who later became a bishop and Jacob Sider formed a congregation here in the Short Hills. The denomination advocated adult conversion and baptism, and rejected secular pleasures, fashionable dress and political and military involvement. A small, tightly knit religious group because of these strongly-held views, the Brethren in Christ Church grew slowly, drawing its members, popularly known as Tunkers, primarily from German-speaking rural communities. By the end of the 19th century, however, it was firmly established in Welland, York, Waterloo and Simcoe Counties.”

Click to play or download Bretheren in Christ Cemetery TripClip (mp3 format)

This destination is also part of the TripClip tour 'Touring the Twelve.'

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