Father Laboureau

1837 – 1904

Theophilus François Laboureau was born in 1837 in France and was appointed to St. Ann’s Church in Penetanguishene in 1873. He felt that his small church should be replaced with a fitting memorial church to commemorate the deeds of Canada’s heroic missionaries and deep history of Penetanguishene. For the next few years, Father Laboureau travelled through Europe securing funds to build St. Ann’s church. In 1886, the cornerstone was laid, and the “Cathedral of the North” was completed in 1902.