First Presbyterian Church - Greeneville, TN

This congregation was founded in 1780 under the trees of Greeneville's Bug Spring by Samuel Doak. Originally called Mount Bethel Presbyterian Church and then Harmony Church. This building dates from 1848 and was restored after a disastrous fire in 1928. This church is on the National Register of Historic Districts as part of the Greeneville Historic District. It is located along Main St. (US321, Old US 11E"

Clifton First Presbyterian Church

During the Civil War, Late in December 1863, teh 2nd Tennessee Mounted Infantry (US) occupied Clifton and placed a garrison on Stockade Hill, located right behind this church, which Confederates had used as a hospital. The Federals used it as a livery stable and a blacksmith shop. The damage the building suffered resulted in a claim against teh United States, which compensated the congregation with $780 in 1915. The congregation used those funds to contruct the steeple seen here.

If you look at this picture full sized, you may notice how the bricks around the front door don't seem as uniform like around the rest of the building. Federal Troops enlarged the front door, since they used the building as a stable for their horses. After the war, the original door was replaced. Today, the building is on the National Register of Historic Places.

First Presbyterian Church - Jonesborough, TN

The congregation that eventually built this building started as the Hebron Presbyterian Church in 1790. In 1816, the congregation moved to Jonesborough and bought land between 2nd and Washington on the north side of Main St.

This building was built in a Greek Revival style in 1850. Plans for the building were drawn up by a Mr. Clise of nearby Kingsport. The bricks and window shutters were all handmade and are originals.

The original design specified wide outside front steps but female modesty wanted that changed. (One's ankles should not be revealed while wearing a hoop skirt!) While the view is partially obstructed, you won't see steps. The terrace surrounding the steps were enclosed, and they became indoor steps. Thus, the main entrance to the building looks like it is on a second story balcony behind the six columns.

Mars Hill Presbyterian Church - Athens, TN

A little over a month after Athens became the county seat of McMinn County, this congregation was started. This brick building was built in 1838 to be their church building and a civic meeting house.

During the Civil War, their pastor left to become a chaplain for the Confederates. In the summer of 1863, Union troops came to occupy the city and most of the people in the city fled south. Those of the conregation who remained had no pastor. When the war was over, the church was in bad shape. Restoration was slow, but by 1878, the building was fully rebuilt.

In 1944, the building caught fire and much of the interior was damaged and then repaired. Additions and renovations were made in 1960.

Literaly every time I walked up to photograph this place, the sun would hide behind clouds. When I would give up and walk away, the sun would come out. The clouds can be such a tease sometimes. Hmmph.

Zion Presbyterian Church

Between 1805 and 1808, Scottish-Irish settlers arrived in Maury County from South Carolina. Among them were descendants of John Knox, who organized and built a log church in 1807 before building homes for their families.

That log church stood near the center of a tract of land purchased from the heirs of Gen. Nathaniel Greene, who received 25,000 acres in Maury County for his service during the Revolutionary War.

The present building was completed in 1849 and was built my members and slaves who cut the wood and crafted the bricks at the site. Measuring 80 by 50 feet, it is three stories tall with a recessed porch and built in a Greek Revival style.

An old cemetery with 1500 graves surrounds the building. Among those buried here amid the shrubs and trees are fifteen Revolutionary War soldiers, three from the War of 1812, one from the Seminole War of 1836 and sixty Confederate soldiers.

Today, it is the oldest active congregation in the county and the building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Historical Marker:
seemidtn.com/gallery/index.php?album=historical-markers/g...

Shelbyville First Presbyterian Church

In 1854, William H Gosling designed this two story building in the Greek Revival ecclesiastical style. The congregation organized in 1810. Today, the building is on the National Register of Historic Places.

During the civil war, the building was used as a hospital, but worship services continued. Confederate General Braxton Bragg attended a revival here in 1863.