History of Our Church
The Beginings
On March 4, 1928, Dr. W. Moore Scott, Sup’t. of Home Mission, came to West Memphis for a check up on the number of Presbyterians in West Memphis. Finding fourteen, he deemed it necessary to organize a church. In August, 1928 a revival was held in the Baptist Church (which was then the only white church building in West Memphis) and a Presbyterian Church was organized with twenty-seven members. Services were held bi-monthly in the Baptist Church until the depression of 1929. Then lack of men and money forced them to discontinue the work and the organization became inactive.
In the summer of 1935, Dr. Robert McCaslin of the Second Presbyterian Church of Memphis, Tennessee became interested in West Memphis. He arranged with the members of the Presbyterian Laymans League of Memphis to foster services in the Methodist Church (this building having been completed in February 1935). Finally, the Memphis Presbytery offered to take over the field as a Home Mission Project. Such an offer had to be submitted to the Arkansas Presbytery to obtain permission to labor within its bounds. This stirred Arkansas Presbytery to action and immediately steps were taken toward reorganizing the field. In November 1936, Dr. W. Moore Scott, Mrs. Scott, Rev. J. B. Green and Miss Ola Burton conducted a revival in the Methodist Church and again were organized with forty members. During December, 1936 and January, 1937 services were held on Sunday evenings in the Hulbert Methodist Church. On January 31, 1937 at a meeting of members, plans were made for the immediate preparation for a church building in West Memphis and arrangements were made for services to be held each Sunday in the New Crittenden Theater. Dr. W. Moore Scott, Rev. A. Killough, Mr. J. B. Green and Mr. J. A. Hanna made a canvass for funds and aid with which to build a church. The deficit was supplied by a gift from Assemblys Home Mission and Presbyteries Home Mission Committee. The contract for the present church building was let to Wallin, Dickey and Rich Lumber Company on September 25, 1937. Work was begun on the church on October, 6, 1937. Cost of the building complete with screens, sidewalks, gutters and the heating system was $7,946.44. The church house, located on a lot fifty by two hundred feet is at the southeast corner of Missouri and Danner Streets. This lot was donated to the congregation by Mr. M. L. Thompson and wife, Lerah B. Thompson, upon the solicitation of Mr. Wm. L. Collins. The building was completed March 5, 1938. On March 27, 1938, the congregation voted to join with the First Presbyterian Church of Earle, Arkansas, in calling Rev. Charles Albert Harper of St. Paul Presbyterian Church of Charlotte, N.C. to be Stated Supply of the First Presbyterian Church of West Memphis. Rev. Harper came as a supply Pastor April 21, 1938, which place he held until August 29, 1940, when he was installed as full time pastor. He was our pastor until May 15, 1945. He left us to become an extension worker in Charlotte, N.C. 
This photo is the Home of Charles Albert Harper circa 1940.
April 13, 1945, a pulpit committee, contacted Rev. J. Leighton Scott of Elizabethtown, Kentucky and he accepted the call of the First Presbyterian Church of West Memphis. He was installed Pastor at the evening service on October 21, 1945. |
The Pastors
Charles A. Harper 1937-1945
(First Full Time Minister. Born Memphis, Tennessee on November 19, 1886. Received early education in the public schools of Memphis; College and Seminary Training, “Southwestern” in Clarksville, Tennessee. Married Miss Mehitable Thurston Colby, Served “Our Church” August, 1940-May, 1945. Died October 1, 196 
J. Leighton Scott 1945-1955
A. Hubert Rust 1955-1969
Newton P. Cox Jr. 1970-1975
Clyce H. Hurst Jr. 1977-
John Beaumont -
David Dobbs 2013-Present Day
|
Who are Presbyterians?
As far back as 1837 the General Assembly declared that the church, by its very nature, is a missionary society whose purpose is to share the love of God in Jesus Christ in word and deed and with all the world. Witnessing to the good news of Jesus Christ throughout the world, Presbyterians engage in mission activities, seek to alleviate hunger, foster self-development, respond to disasters, support mission works, preach the gospel, heal the sick and educate new generations for the future.
Some of the principles articulated by John Calvin remain at the core of Presbyterian beliefs. Among these are the sovereignty of God, the authority of the scripture, justification by grace through faith and the priesthood of all believers. What they mean is that God is the supreme authority throughout the universe. Our knowledge of God and God’s purpose for humanity comes from the Bible, particularly what is revealed in the New Testament through the life of Jesus Christ. Our salvation (justification) through Jesus is God’s generous gift to us and not the result of our own accomplishments. It is everyone’s job — ministers and lay people alike — to share this Good News with the whole world. That is also why the Presbyterian church is governed at all levels by a combination of clergy and laity, men and women alike. The EPC is a family of churches, Reformed and Presbyterian, defined by shared core values and bonded by the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. The EPC is a church family centered upon the good news of what God has done for the world through His Son, Jesus Christ. www.epc.org |
|
