Tercentennial Celebration

- Celebrating God’s Faithfulness for 300 Years -

History of Buildings

A congregation was in existence at Great Valley in 1710. How long before that is unknown, but the first public reference to it was in the Minutes of Philadelphia Presbytery on September 20, 1710.

log_church_small In the beginning the members met in the woods or in homes. The first church building was made of logs and erected in 1720. During the 1777-78 Valley Forge encampment the log church had been standing for 57 years! The site of it is north of where the old vault building now stands and is marked by the grave of Thomas Hutchinson, who asked to be buried beneath its pulpit. The members contributed the material for the log church and most of the labor. It was constructed of unhewn logs, notched at the corners, and the cracks were filled with coarse clay mortar. The roof was covered with shingles split and shaved in the woods. The floor was hard clay. Except for the window glass, the material was all hand-made, even the nails. Since there was no provision for heating, the women brought heated blocks of wood or stone to church with them to keep their hands and feet warm. The log church served the congregation for 73 years.

Richard Bollinger Painting

As part of GVPC’s tercentennial celebration of God’s faithfulness, noted artist Richard Bollinger was commissioned to portray the sanctuary and Session House as they may have looked on a winter afternoon a century ago. His completed full-color painting is hung in a prominent place in Dickerson Hall as a permanent tribute to our faithful God, who has blessed us for 300 years.

To enable members and friends of Great Valley to share in that tribute, two different types of the 15 5/8” x 25” prints are available, click this link to find out more details.

If you want to find out more about Richard Bollinger, go to his website, www.richardbollinger.net.

Jan 23rd Kick-Off Dinner & Program

Our 300th year celebration began with a family-style dinner featuring recipes from the GVPC cookbook, followed by a program of skits, songs and historical commemorations. Our special guest was noted watercolorist Richard Bollinger, who graciously signed prints of the painting which he was commissioned to do of Great Valley Presbyterian Church.

Find many pictures of the event on our facebook page:

Great Valley Presbyterian Church

Video

First Pastorate

From the 1710 Presbytery minutes we know that two separate groups of Welsh Presbyterians had formed a united congregation, one body living in the Welsh Tract in Pennsylvania and the other in Delaware at Pencader. These churches were among the twelve organized prior to 1770.

David Evans was an elder, probably having been ordained in Wales. He preached to both these congregations but the Presbytery refused to ordain him until he had received further theological training. In 1713 he graduated from Yale College in a class of three. Soon after his graduation, Rev. Evans received a call from the church in Delaware, which he accepted, and was ordained in 1714. He has the distinction of being the first candidate for the ministry taken under the care of any Presbytery in our land. He was also the first man ordained to the Christian ministry in this country, according to a brief history of the church published by Dr. Arthur Willis Spooner, the minister at Great Valley a hundred years later.

The people at Great Valley did not unite with the Delaware Church in that call. They were authorized by the Presbytery to form themselves into a separate and distinct body.

An Evening with the Artist: Richard Bollinger

On Saturday, May 15, 2010, at 7:30PM, Great Valley Presbyterian Church will host noted artist Richard Bollinger in “An Evening with the Artist.” Mr. Bollinger will present a multi-media program showing his process for producing a painting, which in this instance is a portrait of the sanctuary and Session House of Great Valley Presbyterian Church as they may have looked on a winter afternoon a century ago. He relates the process of creating a painting to his relationship with God through Christ, sharing how his faith has affected his life.

Click here for directions to Great Valley Presbyterian Church