The earlier ministers of the church played an important role in spreading Presbyterianism throughout Vancouver Island and the interior of the province.

[1] As the congregation grew in size, owing to Victoria's sizeable Scottish population, the corner stone for the present church was laid on March 7, 1889.

The church was designed in the Scottish baronial style by architect Leonard Buttress Trimen.

The church was one of the first in North America to be constructed with electric lights.

[1] In 1925, St. Andrew's voted to remain Presbyterian when two-thirds of the denomination split to form the United Church of Canada.