CHRONOLOGY | First Presbyterian

April 1801: Nehemiah Hubbard of Connecticut buys Range One, Township Three in the Western Reserve, paying $1.19 per acre for the 16,000 acres. Although the township would be named for him, Hubbard would never set foot in it.
Sept. 1801: Samuel Tylee, who had been appointed as Hubbard's land agent, arrives in Hubbard. Along with Samuel Tylee were his wife, Anna, five of their children and two of Samuel's brothers -- the first settlers.
1804: The new congregation, the First Presbyterian Society, is formed. Records show that at least 10 men, their wives and children, were original members. The first group of elders to be elected were Sylvester Tylee (brother of Samuel, also a member of the church), John Jewell and either William Clingan or Robert Love (histories vary).
Circa 1806: The first church, a log structure, is built on what is now North Main Street, at the south end of the Old North Cemetery.
1812: The Rev. James Satterfield becomes the first installed pastor while also serving the Moorfield church in what is now Hermitage, Pa. He would serve these two churches until 1831, making his 19-year pastorate the longest in the history of the church.
1825: The combined membership of the Hubbard and Moorfield churches was 175 people, and there were 38 baptisms the previous year.
Feb. 15, 1828: The congregation bought, for $1, a plot of 0.825 acres just a few hundred feet south of the original log church. A new frame church was reportedly built later that year. Unfortunately, no photographs or paintings of this church exist.
1836: The Rev. Samuel McClain becomes the second pastor, and church membership reaches 100.
Dec. 22, 1854: The Old School Presbyterian Church of Hubbard purchases for $100, just over six-tenths of an acre from Maria Hager and Eliza Clingan, daughters of Samuel Tylee. The property was at the corner of Hager Street and what is now West Liberty Street, just two blocks from the center of town.
May 5, 1855: The congregation sells the second church and its land to Hubbard Township for $56
1857: A new church, the third, is built in the Greek Revival style. This building will remain the congregation's home for 102 years.
Aug. 8, 1864: The oldest surviving written records begin. Mr. A.M. Jewell, later to become the president of Hubbard Savings Bank is elected chairman of the congregation.
1891: The congregation calls the Rev. Alden D. Collins to be their pastor. This was the first time that the church did not share a pastor with another church.
1907-08: A manse, the first owned by the church, is built next to the church.
1923-24: A major expansion and modernization of the church building is undertaken.
1930: The congregation establishes the first Board of Deacons.
1941-45: An honor roll shows 77 men and four women from the congregation serving in the armed forces, out of a congregation averaging 300 members. Two of these, both pilots, give their lives for their country.
Nov. 1946: The congregation adopts the rotation system for electing elders. Elders would be elected for three-year terms on the session instead of having life terms.
1948: The first electric organ is installed.
Nov. 22, 1959: A new sanctuary, the fourth for the congregation, is dedicated at 22 Westview Ave., the present site of the church. The sanctuary seats 500.
Oct. 30, 1960: The Christian Education wing containing offices, classrooms, kitchen and social hall is dedicated.
1969: A pre-school nursery, open to the public, is established using church facilities. It runs until 1999.
1973: A woman is elected to the Board of Deacons, the first woman to be elected to one of the three official boards of the church.
1974: Two women are elected to serve on the session, becoming the first female elders.
1977: The Board of Trustees is merged into the session, establishing a new unicameral session.
Sept. 30, 1993: The Rev. Earl Caldwell retires, and becomes the first Pastor Emeritus in the history of the church. His 14 year pastorate ranks as the longest in modern times.
Jan. 1, 2001: The current pastor, the Rev. J. Larry Stewart, begins his tenure.
2002: An addition is made to the Christian Education wing. It contains an elevator.