Pickens County AlArchives Church Records.....Carrollton Presbyterian Church ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/al/alfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Buren Windle Buren.Windle@att.net September 6, 2005, 2:21 pm Carrollton Presbyterian Church The Presbyterian Church is located close to the heart of Carrollton, just due east of the Court House on Hwy 86. This Church was organized in 1839. The first preachers were not permanent here. Itinerant preachers, that is ministers who traveled from place to place in a circuit as missionaries, supplied them. Some early settlers of Pickens County were of Irish descent and Presbyterians. In 1844 this Church dissolved. Then in 1853 it was reorganized and again in 1868. According to the papers of James W. Marshall a notice was posted in 1868 stating “The congregation have undertaken to remove and rebuild a house of worship.’ The building was evidently not yet ready in 1872, when the Tuscaloosa Presbytery met in Carrollton, but used the Methodist Church building instead. In 1901 the Presbyterian Church was destroyed by a tornado or most accounts state that it burned down, and a new building was dedicated in 1903. The following information is from a book written by Dr. Hugh Hill (1960) “When I first recall the Church; it was a small frame building. The congregation has never been very large. Their preaching service days have always been the third Sunday and prayer meetings on Sunday afternoon. They don’t have prayer meetings now. Miss. Jane Latham was Mrs. Presbyterian, and her husband, Henry Latham, was second in command. Mattie Latham Lofton, who now lives here, is still leader in the Church. Mama was organist in 1884, and previous to that time. All of her children, 5 in number, were christened in this Church. Dr. Prague was minister at that time. My 2 sons, Hugh and William, are now officers in the Church. The Baptist used Wednesday nights for their prayer meetings, the Methodist Thursday night, and the Presbyterians Sunday afternoon. From what I could gather, at that tender age, it seemed that they were as much used for courting nights, as for prayer service.” The following information is from the 1968 history written by Mrs. Jack Danner, the Church historian at that time. “There are twenty active members on the Church roll, fourteen members on the W.O.C. (Women of the Church) roll, and there was an average attendance of nine at the Sunday school. We have Sunday school on each Sunday, Church on each third Sunday, and the W.O.C. meets each Monday after the third Sunday. In February, Mr. and Mrs. Allison Farlowe of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina gave a one hundred dollar donation in memory of her brother, William E. Leatherwood, who was killed in Vietnam. A committee decided to purchase a communion table in his memory with the money. In April, Mrs. R.H. Foster and Mrs. Jack Danner attended Presbyterial in Aliceville. Mrs. Danner was installed for a two-year term as Presbyterial Historian. Dr. Charles E. Allen served as pastor on third Sunday until his death on April 22nd. Because of our love for him it was decided to have a memorial in his honor. A committee decided to purchase two communion chairs to go with the communion table. We did not have services in May because third Sunday was baccalaureate Sunday. Then in June, Judge Robert H. Kirksey spoke to us and in July Mr. J. David Simpson, a retired minister, filled the pulpit. In June we began the use of printed Church bulletins that were prepared by Jack Danner. In August the Reverend Mr. James Harpole, a chaplain at Partlow in Tuscaloosa, began filling our pulpit. Among those who attend the Church, there was one birth. A daughter, Katherine Anne, was born to Mr. and Mrs. Jack Danner on August 29th. In September the communion table and two chairs arrived, and in October the dedication of the communion table took place. Guest present for the dedication were Mrs. William E. Leatherwood, of Carrollton, Alabama, Mrs. Robert Pogue and Mrs. George White of Centreville, Alabama, and Mrs. Burton Moore of Indianola, Mississippi. The Officers of the Women of the Church are: President Mrs. W.E. Hill Vice President Mrs. Charles Noland Secretary Mrs. R.H. Foster Treasurer Mrs. D.M.N. Ross Historian Mrs. T.R. Spell, Jr. The Chairwomen for the Women of the Church are: Personal Faith and Family Life Mrs. O.B. Clements Christian Community Action Mrs. Estelle G. Fitzpatrick Ecumenical Mission and Relations Miss Annie Summerville Leadership and Resources Mrs. Elizabeth Stewart The W.O.C. is responsible for having someone place flowers in the Church for third Sunday and for having someone provide lunch for the minister since he must come from out of town. Mrs. D.M.N. Ross has been sending cards to those who are ill and this remembrance is greatly appreciated. Offerings given by the W.O.C. during the year were: Blessing Box $ 20.75 Special Birthday Offering $ 37.00 White Cross $ 9.39 Talladega Home $ 29.00 Joy Gift $ 39.15 Total All Contributions $ 135.29 The Elders of the Church are Mr. Hugh Hill and Mr. Francis Puckett, and the Deacon is Dr. William Hill. For Church services, our pianists are Mrs. Elizabeth Stewart and Mrs. Frances Puckett. The Church Officers are: Clerk of the Session Mr. Hugh Hill Treasurer Mrs. Charles Noland The Sunday School Officers are: Superintendent Mr. Jack Danner Treasurer Mrs. Jack Danner The following is excerpts from the Pickens County Herald dated Aug-24, 2005. “The Building has been empty for some years now; the late Dr. William Hill was the last remaining member. Some members of the community, however, are determined to give the building a new lease on life. When the historic church was threatened with demolition, the Presbytery—the regional governing body of the Presbyterian Church—offered to give the building to the Pickens County Tourism Association. That group has sanctioned efforts by the newly - formed Carrollton Presbyterian Church Project committee to try to raise money for renovating the structure and landscaping the grounds. Several former members hope the church building can be saved. One of these is Dr. William Curry, a Carrollton native who now lives in Birmingham. He and wife Julie joined the church when they returned to Pickens County after a stint in Nashville. Both played the piano there. We were the youngest family by several decades, said Curry. Our daughter Laura was the only child there. The Curry’s’ son, John Walter, was baptized at Carrollton Presbyterian Church. That was the first baptism there in a long, long time, and I’m pretty certain it was the last one, Curry said. When John Walter died at age 11 months, the small congregation surrounded the family with love and understanding. People from all over town were involved in supporting us, and the church especially so, Curry said. Betty Foster Pate, whose father served the church as a minister, is another former member with strong tie to the church. Her father, Rev. Harry R. Foster, came to Pickens County as pastor of the Presbyterian Church in Carrollton and nearby towns in 1923. Carrollton was his first pastorate – and also his last. Foster left Carrollton to serve other churches then returned after an absence of 40 years. On his first Sunday back—March 23, 1969—the Carrollton Methodist and Baptist churches suspended their own morning services so they could join the Presbyterians in welcoming Rev. Foster back to town, his daughter said. Like Curry, Mrs. Pate has many fond recollections of the church. “I can remember my mother and Elizabeth Stewart playing the piano there,” she said. The last recorded minutes of the Women of the Church group are dated Feb. 19, 1989. Sunday school was held at the church until about 1995 or 1996, said Mrs. Pate." File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/al/pickens/churches/carrollt59nbb.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/alfiles/ File size: 8.4 Kb