The Matheson Window, presented to the church in 1913, depicts Mary Magdalene, Joanna and Mary, the Mother of James (Luke 24: 1-12) at the tomb addressed by an angel. The banner below is held by two angels with the inscription “He is risen”. Lilies and roses are in the foreground. Below the banner is the Matheson family crest including the motto “FAC ET SPERA”.
The window is signed by Percy Bacon, 11 Newman Street, London, England, and is the only non Canadian made window in the church.
Roderick Matheson was born in the western highlands of Scotland in 1973 and emigrated to Canada in 1807 to join a brother serving in the British Army in Quebec. A wounded veteran of the War of 1812, he was granted significant lands in and around the military settlement of Perth in 1816. He continues his military connections throughout his life and at the age of 55 in 1855, he was appointed Colonel/Commandant of the 1st Military District of Canada West. A major landowner, businessman and developer in the Perth/Smiths Falls area, Matheson was one of the initiators of the Tay Navigation Company and opened the first bank in Perth. His political life culminated as a signatory of the Proclamation of Confederation in 1867 and his appointment to the first Senate of the Dominion of Canada.
Although born a Presbyterian, Matheson’s second marriage was to Annabella Russell, a staunch Anglican, who took all of their children with her to St. James. She died in Perth in 1854 and subsequent to her death, it appears Robert Matheson supported this church. The couple had 11 children; seven girls and four boys. Most of the children did not marry and lived together in their family home on Gore Street, now the Perth Museum.
His son, Arthur, is also commemorated in the church on the Matheson Plaque.
