History

180 years...and counting!

The history of our church is the story of hundreds of faithful men, women, and children who have lived their faith in Jesus Christ and shared their gifts to create a church that continues to thrive. We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses who continue to inspire our mission and ministry today. 

Our Clayton Presbyterian roots come from the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Following the Revolutionary War as our nation began to expand beyond the Appalachian Mountains, the Cumberland Presbytery in the Synod of Kentucky saw a need to bring the message of Christ to the new settlers. Missionaries from the south traveled north to proclaim the gospel, and their efforts led them to Indiana, a new state being settled.

In 1831 in the town of Belleville a group of Cumberland Presbyterians began gathering for worship in a private home. Andrew Jackson was President of the United States, and Indiana had been a state for just fifteen years. The town of Clayton did not yet exist. In 1833 the Wabash Presbytery of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church officially recognized our church as the Cumberland Presbyterian Church of Liberty Township. Alexander C. Downey, a pioneer missionary from Kentucky, was the organizing pastor. 

The congregation continued to worship in members' homes and in the Belleville school house. By 1841 when thirty-two people were recorded as members, the congregation was called the Belleville Cumberland Presbyterian Church. On March 15, 1846, they began meeting in the Mitchell District School House two miles west of Belleville, just south of the National Road (U.S. 40). 

In 1851, when the town of Clayton (first called Claysville) was laid out, the congregation built its first church on land donated by Richard Worrell. Thinking the town would grow south, the building was built by Frederick Hopwood for a cost of $600 on the east side of the Clayton-Hazelwood Road, facing west, on the south edge of town. It had bare floors, was heated by two wood stoves, had a four foot divider down the middle to separate the men from the women and children, and the benches were made out of eight-inch planks for the seats and the backs. 

In 1869 the first organ in the county was purchased for $300. The money was raised by chartering a railroad car and running an excursion to Marshall, Illinois. 

In 1872 the church moved to the south side of Tennessee Street. Men sat on the east side, and the women and children on the west. Two new box wood stoves, two great chandeliers each holding three coal-oil lamps, a very fancy lamp over the pulpit, and a new pulpit and pews were added. The church was made available to other congregations in the area for their use during the next thirty years.

In 1901 ground was broken for a new sanctuary at our present site, the corner of Michigan and Pennsylvania. The church cost over $5,000 and was paid for in full on the day of dedication, February 2, 1902. The children of the church made their contribution by collecting used medicine bottles which they washed and sold for one or two cents each. People of the town also helped in the building project. In 1910 the church was raised to create a basement beneath it. 

A major crisis arose when the church building was destroyed by fire on December 23, 1944. The elders of the church met that same day, and Christmas services were held the next day in the Clayton school where the congregation continued to meet until new facilities could be erected. At the suggestion of Ruth Martin Edmondson, the slogan of the church became: "From the ashes we shall arise."

Ground was broken for our present building in 1946, but with the end of World War II, the cost of building materials soared. Volunteer labor was given to help dig the basement; rock had to be blasted. Money was raised by contributions, fish fries, the proceeds from the men of the church farming forty acres of land, plus $25,000 insurance money. Still it was not enough - only the basement and back part of the church were completed, with the first worship service held in the basement on September 4, 1948. 

In August 1953, another Building Committee was formed to build the sanctuary. On October 6, 1955, the new sanctuary was dedicated, and the total cost of the new church starting from 1946 was over $100,000. 

In the years since, our beautiful building has been carefully maintained, and has undergone many improvements inside and outside. Land for a parking lot was acquired across the street, and a manse has both come and gone. In 1984 the bell tower was dedicated in honor of the church's founders. April 13, 2015 was the dedication date for the Lift Project and building addition, with deep appreciation for the late pastor, Rev. David McDonald, who led us in making this dream a reality. 

The history of our buildings and locations only begins to tell the story. The congregation of Clayton Presbyterian Church is grateful to all those who have served before us through many changes in our community. We continue with the same vision of our founders: to proclaim and live the good news of our Lord Jesus Christ.