First Presbyterian Church (Muscatine, Iowa)

First Presbyterian Church is located in Muscatine, Iowa, United States. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

History

The congregation was initially organized in 1839.^[2] On February 2, 1842 the Rev. John Stocker became the first pastor and the church itself was organized with the following members: Elizabeth R. Stocker, Harvey Gillete, Azel Farnsworth, Jane Lathrop, Priscilla Burdit, William Hill, Isabella Ogilvie, Martha Vanatta, Rebecca Smith, Almira Lockwood and Ann Farnsworth.^[3] At first the church did not have a building of its own and it worshiped in a building called the People’s Church, which was a union meeting house, a building occupied by Trinity Episcopal and the Masons, and a log school house.

The congregation erected its first church building in 1849 when the Rev. John Hudson was the pastor.^[3] The building measured 35 by 40 feet and was located at the corner of Mulberry Street between Third and Fourth Streets.^[3] By 1856 the congregation outgrew the building and plans were made for a new one.

The present church building was built at the corner of Iowa Avenue and Fourth Street. The Gothic Revival style structure was dedicated in 1859. The dedicatory address was delivered by the Rev. W.S. Plummer, D.D. of the Western Theological Seminary in Allegheny, Pennsylvania.

The classroom wing was added to the church in 1915. The building was listed as an American Presbyterian and Reformed Historical Site in 1976^[3] and the following year it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.^[1] The sanctuary was remodeled in 2004-2005. The renovation featured a larger gathering space in the narthex.

References

External links

• Church Website
• Archiplanet Listing