If you are a Presbyterian in The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), our denomination, the annual meeting of the General Assembly is a big deal. And, if you happen to worship at First Presbyterian in Charlotte, it is even a bigger deal if the General Assembly is hosted by your home church, which First Presbyterian has done four times: 1864, 1897, 1920 and 1958. All these occasions were important Charlotte events and literally frontpage news for The Charlotte Observer. And, while the General Assembly did not convene at First Presbyterian in 1998, it did meet in Charlotte, and First Presbyterian played a major role in that gathering of the faithful. It is really not surprising that Charlotte has been selected as the host city for the General Assembly five times. Charlotte has long been identified as a major center of Presbyterianism owing in large part to the large influx of Scots-Irish and Scots who settled in the area. Q: So, what is the General Assembly and why is it so important to the church? A: The General Assembly is THE annual meeting of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) as a whole and therefore serves as a symbol of unity for the church and […]

Most locals know that Charlotte exists where is does because of the intersection of two ancient Native American trading paths at the spot we now know as the Square – the intersection of today’s Tryon and Trade Streets. But how and when did a beautiful Gothic style church building for the Presbyterians of Charlotte, set on a full city block and just steps from the Square, come to pass? Here are a few of the key dates and events. Before any church building existed in Charlotte, there are historical reports of at least one travelling minister, and perhaps others, preaching in a grove of trees near the blacksmith shop that was located on the present grounds of First Presbyterian. This activity appears to date back as early as the 1750s. In 1815, the Charlotte Town Commissioners set aside lots between what is now Church and Poplar Streets to be used as a town church for all denominations (a site chosen perhaps because of its history as a location for preaching), along with a cemetery. The population of Charlotte was about 300 at the time, representing several Protestant denominations, with Presbyterians being the largest group by far. Many Charlotte Presbyterians at […]

On December 22, 1876, The Charlotte Democrat reported that a new and elegant Parsonage had been completed for the Pastor of First Presbyterian Church. The paper reported “We wish every Christian Minister of the Gospel in the land had as nice a house to live in.” According to A History of First Presbyterian Church by Elizabeth Williams, contracts were let for Mr. Moss and Mr. Galloway to do the brickwork and Mr. Rudisill the woodwork. The two and one-half story stucco building beside the church on West Trade Street had 8 rooms. The kitchen and water were within easy reach of the building. A number of ministers and others lived in the house. Two moderators of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church U.S. (Southern) lived in the manse; Dr. James R. Howerton and his son Philip Howerton (born in the manse). The final occupant, before it was converted to an office building was Dr. Albert Sidney Johnson until 1940 when he completed his stint as a minister at First Church. Thereafter the building served as an office for the church as well as the Mecklenburg Presbytery and the North Carolina Synod. An article in the Charlotte Observer, dated August 2, […]

Accion began in the early 1980’s under the direction of the Rev. Oscar Dorantes of Merida, Yucatan.  Oscar, a native of Yucatan, was educated at Birmingham Bible College in Birmingham, Alabama in the 60’s.  After returning to Mexico, he was ordained and served a number of small churches in the peninsula, including First Presbyterian in Merida.  While serving the Presbyterian Church, he maintained contact with a number of friends in the US, and as his network of contacts grew, Oscar received a number of requests to organize trips from US churches for mission projects in the Yucatan.  As these requests grew, Oscar left full time church work to form a local Board of Directors and begin Accion Ministries. His efforts multiplied both in requests from local villages and interest in US mission teams.   First Presbyterian’s involvement with the ministry began with an initial fact-finding trip in the fall of 1988.   Many groups from First Presbyterian as well as other groups from the Carolinas, Virginia and Georgia, as well as others as far west as California, have traveled to the three states of the Yucatan (Yucatan, Campeche and Quintana Roo) to complete work projects.  Teams have included team members ranging from […]

You never know what kind of calls you’re going to receive when you’re the church receptionist…
When we were building the Poplar Street Building in 2000, our receptionist answered a call from a former member who said she had a stained glass window that was original to the church and would like to give it back!

We are blessed with a beautiful church, “a model of elegance and good taste” The Mecklenburg Times announced in April 1895 in anticipation of the re-opening of the First Presbyterian Church in Charlotte following an extensive and quite expensive (just over $30,000) rebuilding and remodeling of the church. One of the new and much anticipated features of the 1894-1895 remodeling was the installation of three very large and exquisitely ornate chandeliers. “The First Presbyterian Church is to have the handsomest chandeliers in the State”, revealed the Daily Charlotte Observer in a sneak preview in 1894. Prior to the remodeling, First Presbyterian had been regarded as one the most dimly lit churches in Charlotte, having only 39 lights in total. The Session decided as early as 1888 that new lighting, and lighting with electricity, was highly desirable and some electric lights were added at that time to supplement the gas lights. Electric lighting, though a relatively new technology (it wasn’t until 1883 that the first church in the United States was wired for electricity), was much easier to use and much safer than gas. Electrical lighting was rapidly replacing gas lighting across the country. The chandeliers that were going to adorn […]

Most members of First Presbyterian have seen the photographs of all the ministers who have served our church that hang on the walls of the Session room. But do you know what other room in the church has walls covered with photographs showing 100 years of our history?

Perhaps you have noticed the large bronze tablet to the left as you enter the church. It says “First Presbyterian Church Organized 1832.” And if you had been around First Presbyterian in 1932, you would have been here for the Centennial Celebration. So what gives – why are we celebrating our Bicentennial in 2021? Turns out it’s a complicated story. The early history of First Presbyterian contains a few twists and turns, beginning as a group of Presbyterians in the small village of Charlotte, worshipping where they could and when a minister was available. Recording their history was apparently not their top priority, and somewhere along the way folks got confused about what happened when. But the Presbyterians were important in Charlotte from the beginning. They were by far the largest religious group in the town’s early population, and they were active in civic affairs. They often met in the courthouse at the Square, among other locations. Ministers were mostly clergy shared with other Presbyterian churches nearby, which were all outside of the small town (and many of which still exist, although now Charlotte has grown to incorporate them).  The nearest was Sugar (Sugaw) Creek Presbyterian at the corner of […]