Salem Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church will celebrate its 190th anniversary with a worship service and fellowship luncheon this Sunday, June 28.
The church was organized June 19, 1836, by the Rev. Henry Bryson with 53 charter members. The year before, in 1835, a meeting had been held at the home of area settler Abner Mathews to discuss ways to secure a minister and organize a congregation.
The first house of worship was a log structure built on four acres donated by Mathews. The church’s first pastor, the Rev. John Wilson, served from 1837 to 1865.
In nearly 190 years, Salem Presbyterian has had only nine pastors and nine treasurers, and today counts 155 active members.
Having helped establish at least five other congregations, Salem has earned the designation “mother of churches.” The current sanctuary, erected in 1940, is the fourth building on the site; its predecessor was destroyed by fire in 1939.
An adjoining cemetery predates the church and contains graves of Native Americans and enslaved people.
Salem Presbyterian is a member of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, which traces its roots to Scotland, where the Associate Presbytery was organized in 1733. The two branches eventually united in America in 1782 to form the ARP.
The anniversary service begins at 11 a.m. Sunday at 3400 Atoka-Idaville Road. More information is available at salempres.com or by calling 901-837-8210.
