In 1902 the Diocese of Toronto altered church jurisdictions such that St. Paul's L'Amoreaux became part of the Parish of Markham and Unionville. This reduced the number of Scarborough churches served by the Rev. William Farncomb to three. These remaining three (St. Margaret's, Christ's Church, St. Jude's) would continue to share the same incumbent until 1922.1

Disaster struck in the spring of 1904 when the wooden St. Margaret's church was hit by a grass fire near the building. The entire church structure burned in less than an hour. Since Rev. Farncomb's incumbency had originally been designated as temporary and would end in July 1904, by the summer of that year St. Margaret's had neither a church, nor a minister.

In January 1905, Rev. George I. B. Johnson arrived to fill the Scarborough vacancy. On February 24 a meeting was held in the parsonage to discuss rebuilding St. Margaret's. Over the course of the next year the new church was built in the chosen location in the cemetery, using donations from parishioners. All able-bodied men in the closely-knit rural parish assisted with its construction. The church (which still stands today beside the present church) officially opened for services May 13, 1906.

Rev. N. A. Fitzroy Bourne succeeded Rev. Johnson in 1908, followed in 1911 by Rev. A. M. I. Durnford who would remain until 1928. On Christmas Day 1918 disaster struck Christ's Church, when it, like the old St. Margaret's, burnt to the ground. Its reconstruction became the major project of Durnford's incumbency. The second Christ's Church opened in May 1922.

During the pre- and post-WWI period the population of Scarborough increased dramatically, reaching approximately 12, 000 by the early 1920s.2 This growth gave way to the construction of a number of Anglican churches including the Church of the Epiphany (1911), St. Nicholas (1911), St. Timothy's, Agincourt (1919), St. Crispin's (1922), and St. Simon's (1925). Several changes to incumbency jurisdictions resulted from this development. The Agincourt area was given its own incumbent who also ministered to St. Jude's. St. Simon's in Highland Creek was partnered with Christ's Church and St. Margaret's.

Changes at St. Margaret's over the next several years occurred primarily in regard to its property and administration. Electric lighting was put into the church in 1924. In 1928 members of the church, along with new incumbent Rev. J. H. Colclough, wished to renovate the cemetery, clearing it for expansion and beautification. Because the property was still Crown land by virtue of the deed of 1832, it meant special legislation was required to accommodate the renovation project. The result was the creation of a Cemetery Board by order of the Ontario government. Within three years the renovation was complete with the addition of shrubbery, flowerbeds, a gravel driveway, and a new entrance with stone pillars and a wrought-iron gateway (a gift presented by E. J. Lea in 1931).

In 1938 the incumbency was taken over by Rev. Robert R. Bonis, who was to remain at St. Margaret's until 1957. During the post-WWII migration to the suburbs, Scarborough's population doubled, reaching 56, 292 by 1951. It became very obvious to Bonis and Scarborough's three other incumbents that more clergy were needed, and the parishes would have to be split into individual churches. Serving all of the churches had been difficult for some time; students from Wycliffe College had assisted Bonis with Sunday services since his arrival in

1938. Church independence eventually came in 1949 when Christ Church (rebuilt at the present Markham Rd. site in 1936-1937 to accommodate the expansion of Kingston Rd.) and St. Simon's were each given their own incumbent. For the first time, St. Margaret’s was free to concentrate solely on its own needs.

At the 1949 Vestry meeting, the congregation agreed that the first priority should be to build a parish hall to accommodate the activities and meetings of church groups. The hall, which opened in January 1951, was built on the east end of the property adjacent to Lawrence Avenue.

In May 1957, Robert Bonis left St. Margaret's and was replaced by Rev. Thomas W. Harpur, who would stay for the next seven years and oversee much of the conversion of the property to its modern state. In 1958 a new rectory was built on the eastern side of the church. By this time it was also clear that the size of the church was no longer suitable for the ever-increasing size of the congregation. Thus, in the fall of 1958 a building committee was established to discuss the construction of a large, modern building. The architectural firm of Yamazaki and Ridpath was given the contract to design the structure. On June 26, 1960 the parish gathered to witness the turning of sod for the new church to be located between the old one and the newly built rectory. It took one year for the building to be sufficiently completed for services. The dedication by the Right Reverend F. H. Wilkinson, Bishop of Toronto took place on June 21, 1961.

The building of the new church and rectory put the church into considerable debt ($150,000 by 1964). To resolve this problem it was decided to sell a large section of property to the east and south of the church. The Borough of Scarborough purchased some of this property for parkland, while the rest was sold for the development of townhouses. The former Parish Hall was demolished to make room for the new housing. With the money from the property sale the church was able pay its debts and still be left with a surplus of funds. The surplus funds were used to build the Canon Walter Dyer Wing, an addition created with the intention of providing increased Sunday School and meeting space, as well as an apartment for assistant clergy.

The following is a list of the incumbents that have served St. Margaret's since Harpur's departure in 1964:

1964-1978 Walter J. Dyer

1978-2001 John (Jack) R. Roberts

2001-2002 Philip Wadham (interim)

2002- Ronald Scott

1 This history is primarily constructed from: Robert R. Bonis, A History of St. Margaret's in the Pines, West Hill, and the Parish of Scarborough (St. Margaret's-in-the-Pines Church, 1983).
2 All Scarborough population records are obtained from: Barbara Myrvold, The People of Scarborough: A History (Scarborough: The City of Scarborough Public Library Board, 1997), 212.
- Information compiled by Danielle Terbenche