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Parkview Presbyterian Church

6969 Livingston Avenue
614-866-5451

Rooted in Christ and God’s grace, the Parkview Presbyterian Church branches out to:
  • Grow in our faith
  • Respond to our faith
  • And share our faith.
On the sixth day of August, in the year of our Lord 1836, a small Presbyterian Church was established in the village of Reynoldsburg by a committee of the Columbus Presbytery.

It was a mere forty-eight years after the Constitution of the United States was ratified and adopted and only thirty-two years after Ohio was admitted to the Union of American States (1803).

The “New Presbyterian Church of Reynoldsburg” as it was named, received into membership ten staunch Presbyterians on that August afternoon – three of whom were ordained as Elders during a Communion Service the following day. James Robertson was the town’s first Doctor; Archibald Cooper was a carpenter; and J.W. Thompson was a wagon maker. These three men formed the Church’s first Session and selected Elais Van Deman to lead the tiny congregation during its formative years.

Services were initially conducted in the homes of various church members. But the thought of worshiping in an actual church was soon to be realized. On September 11th, 1840, at the home of J.W. Thompson, the members agreed to purchase a lot on which to build a thirty-five by forty-five foot house of worship. To finance the building program eighteen individuals agreed to subscribe to the construction. Contributions ranged from five to seventy-five dollars. In 1841, a 45x90 foot lot was purchased on the corner of Broad Alley and Lancaster Avenue at a cost of one hundred dollars -- and construction began.

Soon afterwards, construction funds ran low and a second subscription was announced with the following notice “….seats in this house will be offered for sale on Thursday next at 3:00 P.M.” Records indicate additional seats were “sold” at prices ranging from twenty-one dollars to fifty dollars. Apparently, other members of the community were attracted to the growing church since fifty-eight members were officially listed on the church rolls in 1841.

The original church served the community well for twenty years until it was destroyed by fire in 1861. But, with typical Presbyterian determination and resolve – and the help of the community – the church was completely rebuilt within the year.

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