– by Valerie Green –
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to sit down and talk with some interesting characters from Greater Victoria’s past? If so, wonder no more. Although these conversations are merely creative figments of my imagination, they are all based on fact.
Edward and Mary Cridge, two gentle, caring souls full of compassion and love, arrived on Vancouver Island in the 1850s. (“Interview” conducted in 1900.)
Please tell me something of your early life.
I was born in 1817 in Devonshire, England. My mother died when I was young so I was raised by my father. At 19, I became a schoolmaster at Oundle Grammar School in Northampton and held that position for six years. I later earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Cambridge and also passed my theological exam. In 1850 I was ordained by the Bishop of Norfolk.
Why did you decide to come to the New World?
I had moved to Essex in 1851 and was appointed incumbent of Essex Christ Church for a three-year tenure. Poor health led me to apply for the Hudson’s Bay Company chaplaincy at Fort Victoria in 1854.
I believe you had already met and married your wife, Mary, by then?
Yes, Mary and I were married on September 14th, 1854, and one week later left on the Marquis of Bute for Victoria, a voyage which took six months. We began ministering at the Fort until construction was completed on the Victoria District Church. We renamed it Christ Church and lived in the parsonage on an annual salary of 400 pounds.
Weren’t you also appointed superintendent of education?
I held that post for 10 years.
Challenging years for you?
Yes, the population had increased because of the Fraser River Gold Rush and I was now ministering to miners, prostitutes and ethnic people. I needed assistance so I wrote to London asking for two or three more priests to assist me. Instead, Bishop George Hills was sent out to oversee all Church operations in the Columbia District. At first we got along well and in 1860 the Bishop appointed me Dean of Christ Church. Together we built the foundation of the Anglican Church in British Columbia.
But then you fell out?
Yes, a doctrinal conflict between us in 1872 split the Anglican Church. It was a bitter dispute.
What happened following this?
I was brought before an Ecclesiastical Court because of our differences over ritualism and formality within the Church. In 1875 I was elected Bishop of the Reformed Episcopal Church overseeing Church affairs from San Francisco to Alaska and I continued to preach at our renamed Church of Our Lord until 1895. I also helped run the Protestant Orphan’s Home and was active in the establishment of the YWCA and the Central High School.
And you and your wife continued your good works?
I’m proud to say we had established the first hospital in Victoria in 1858. Mary had previously been taking patients into our own home. Land was donated for a hospital at Yates and Broad Streets but in 1890 the Royal Jubilee was erected. We also helped to better the deplorable prison conditions.
Mary Cridge died five years after this interview. Bishop Cridge lived until 1913, beloved by many. Today, the Cridge Centre for the Family in Victoria is a reminder of this compassionate man.
Valerie Green is an author and historian and can be reached at valgee@shaw.ca.
