The History of Louisville Presbyterian Church
The beginnings of Louisville Presbyterian Church date to around 1778. A Scotchman named George Galphin established a trading post at a settlement first called Ogeechee. Eventually the settlement was relocated nine miles up river to a place called New Town. In 1795, the legislative commission selected New Town as the capital of Georgia. The Presbyterian community established various meetinghouses around the area from which three main churches developed, Bethel, Ebenezer, and Louisville. When the capital was moved from Louisville in 1806, the town declined and the Louisville church became inactive. The building was given over to the Methodist. The Louisville ARP Church was formally organized in 1874 under the leadership of Dr. A.L. Patterson. During the tenure of Dr. J. C. Galloway, the first building was erected around 1878 or 1880. The first church burned in 1911 and a new building was erected in 1914. In the 1950s, a Sunday School annex was added to the sanctuary building. That annex was further expanded in the 1980s.
Louisville Presbyterian Church has a long history of serving our denomination. The Louisville Women’s Missionary Society was formed in 1885. This society was instrumental in the founding of Second Presbytery’s Missionary Union under the leadership of Mrs. Julia Rhodes. Our church continues a long tradition of preaching the Bible as the Word of God. Many great pastors have served this church.