VISION
To know, love and serve Jesus Christ.

MISSION
Called by God the Father, redeemed by Jesus Christ and guided by the Holy Spirit, Central Presbyterian Church seeks to connect people with Christ by being:

  • A worshiping congregation
  • A praying church, relying on God in all things and for all things
  • A holy family of faith known by our love for one another
  • A discipling church nurturing our “members” into “ministers” through the discerning of God’s call to be equipped, enabled, commissioned for service, and then sent out
  • A united church, bearing with one another according to the Word of God
  • A church filled with gratitude, as we seek to give generously and sacrificially to honor and glorify God
  • A Great Commission church that proclaims the Gospel to our community and the world

HISTORY of CPC
THREE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHES 
 The history of the founding of Central Presbyterian Church in Merced California is really the history of three separate Presbyterian churches; Mariposa Creek Cumberland Presbyterian Church, First Presbyterian Church of Merced and Cumberland Presbyterian Church.

Mariposa Creek Cumberland Presbyterian Church was first organized on September 16th, 1864 with thirteen members.  Jacob Lewis and Mr. L. Lewis were elected as elders and Reverend O.T. Dooley was the first pastor and was paid a salary of $200 a year.  The first worship service of this church was December 31st 1864.  In June of 1868, J. M. Duncan was elected as the new pastor of the church.  The church struggled to meet its financial obligation to pastor Duncan because in September of 1870 the minutes reflect that he had preached 17 times and had only received $149.50 in salary (he was promised an annual salary of $200).  Duncan served until 1874 when the Reverend W. N. Cunningham was elected as pastor.  This little church also faced some controversy as the minutes reflect that on April 18th of that same year J. C. Gilliam who must have been a member of the church, asked for a letter from the church presumably for the purpose of transferring to another Presbyterian church.  Gilliam was refused on the grounds that he had acted as a judge in a horse race on a Sunday and was subsequently censured for his actions.  The next pastor was the Reverend H. P. Ingram who served for several years and helped the church move to Plainsburg California which is about 10 miles from Merced.  Ingram was followed by the Reverend J. P. Walker who was succeeded by the Reverend W. D. Hawkins.  It was at this time that the church recognized the changes and population growth in Merced and began a dialogue regarding merging with what would be in the near future, the Central Presbyterian Church of Merced.

One of the other Presbyterian churches in Merced was First Presbyterian Church of Merced which was originally built on “L” and 22nd streets.  This church was first organized on August 23rd in 1873.  The church was originally organized under the leadership of Reverend John Greath and Judge J. K. Law with a membership of 10.  Judge Law exercised considerable influence over the church and was a critical factor in the merger, so much so that a large stained glass window depicting Jesus shepherding several sheep is named in his honor and is a central feature of the church even to this day.  The Reverend Greath was a “stated supply” pastor.  He was succeeded by the Reverend E. Halliday (also a stated supply pastor) who was succeeded by the Reverend H. C. Peck.  In the beginning before the church building was constructed, the church met in a hall of the Garibaldi store which was located at the corner of 16th and “L” streets.  It was during Peck’s tenure that the church began its building project and in 1881 the building was complete.  Several pastors followed Peck, with varying tenures until the Reverend D. H. McCollough came in 1909.  He was the pastor of record during the time when the churches eventually merged together.

FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH CONGREGATION BEFORE THE MERGER

 

The third Presbyterian Church that helped form Central Presbyterian Church was Cumberland Presbyterian Church of Merced.  Cumberland Church was organized on March 20th in 1876 with 16 members.  It’s interesting to note that both Cumberland Church and First Presbyterian Church met in the same hall which was located in the Garibaldi store.  Cumberland Church was the first to make use of the Garibaldi facilities.  The Reverend E. G. McLean was the first pastor to serve at the church and he oversaw the construction of the church property on the corner of 19th and “L” streets.  The cost of construction was about $4,000 and the church was dedicated on April 2nd in 1877.  This location would be near the future home of Central Presbyterian Church with the property being purchased again later in the future as part of the church’s plan for expansion.  McLean was succeeded by several pastors until the arrival of the Reverend Jas. Miles Webb.  Webb was replaced on June 1st in 1912 by the Reverend T. V. Morre.  Morre was called for the special purpose of uniting the two churches (Cumberland and First Presbyterian churches).  It should be clarified that Cumberland Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church, both of Merced, united to become Central Presbyterian Church.  Mariposa Creek Cumberland Presbyterian Church was the first Presbyterian Church in the area and they merged with Central Presbyterian Church of Merced in 1921 when they deeded all of their property to Central Presbyterian Church.

CUMBERLAND PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

 

The two pastors who oversaw the union of Cumberland and First Presbyterian churches were Morre of Cumberland and McCullough of First Presbyterian with Judge Law playing a critical role in the negotiations.  Both sessions of the churches met on Friday November 28th 1910 at Cumberland Presbyterian church to begin their negotiations for uniting the two churches.  They drew up the following resolution regarding the conditions of union.

1-The name of the united church shall be the Central Presbyterian Church of Merced.

2-The membership of the two churches shall constitute the membership of the united church.

3- The sessions of the two churches as not constituted, shall constitute the session of the united church.

4- The boards of deacons of the two churches as now constituted, shall constitute the board of deacons of the united church.

5-The trustees of the two churches shall constitute the trustees of the united church.

6-All real estate and other property belonging to the separate churches shall become the property of the united church.

The Resolution was presented to each membership for their approval.  On December 11th, 1910 the session of First Presbyterian Church of Merced met to vote on the Resolution.  Unfortunately, there are no records of the discussion or the vote but it can be assumed that the vote was favorable because on June 2nd, 1912 the Reverend D. H. McCullgh and elder J. K. Law met with the session of Cumberland Presbyterian Church to discuss the union of the two churches.  On June 16th, 1912 the Cumberland session approved the merger and the churches then waited for the approval of the San Joaquin Presbytery.  The Presbytery approved the merger and on October 25th, 1912 the two congregations became one church with a total of 288 members, 86 from First Presbyterian Church and 202 from Cumberland Presbyterian church.  At that time Judge Law and a person named Carter Landram moved and seconded that the new church name be “The Central Presbyterian Church of Merced.”  This name was not officially chosen until February 27th, 1913.

THE NEW CENTRAL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF MERCED
October 25th, 1912 marks the official organization of Central Presbyterian Church but at this time the new congregation found themselves in a situation where they had two separate properties, no permanent pastor and they needed to organize their governmental structures.  Most of 1913 would be spent organizing the governmental structures and calling the first pastor.  The governmental structures were quickly put in place in January of 1913 with new members for three boards; Elders, Deacons, and Trustees.  The congregation met on February 2nd of 1913 and directed the boards to appoint a committee to deal with the property situation and select a new site for the church as soon as possible.  While the committee turned its attention toward acquiring property the session began the task of calling a permanent pastor.  The Reverend T. V. Morre had been serving as a stated supply pastor up until this time but on October 12th, 1913 Dr. Henry T. Babcock was called as the first pastor of Central Presbyterian Church and he was officially installed in December of that same year.

1914 was the year that the church really began to develop what would be the church building that would serve the congregation until the present date.  January 28th 1914 was the day that Central Presbyterian Church purchased its present Lot at 20th and “L” streets.  The Lot itself was purchased from a Mr. N. H. Wilson.  The historical documents briefly describe Mr. Wilson.  They state that of his physical stature and characteristics that he was, “small of stature, wirey and shrewed of nature.”  Mr. Wilson was asking $5,000 for the property but he added that if a new church was to be built on the property that he would reduce the cost of the land to $4,000.  In January of 1914 the Building Committee was elected and began the process of hiring an engineering firm.  While the Building Committee was working on the plans for the church structure the former First Presbyterian Church property was purchased by the Merced City School District for $3,500.  The church building itself was sold to the Christian Science church for another $3,500 and the building was moved to 19th and “J” street.  At that time another property on 20th street was purchased for the purpose of the pastoral manse location.  In November of 1915 the congregation approved of the borrowing of $10,000 from the Board of Church Erection and the Building Committee presented to the congregation the building plans drafted by the engineering firm of A. E. Cowell and W. E. Bedesen.

On September 26th, 1916 the congregation of Central Presbyterian Church finally had its finances in order.  They had donations of labor and materials in the amount of $500 and they were able to raise $14,000 in cash.  The cost of the building itself was estimated at $24,000.  After a long wait the loan certificate from the Board of Church Erection finally arrived in the amount of $10,000 and the church trustees were instructed to sign the documents.  Finally the construction of the new church building could begin.  On October 28th, 1916 the cornerstone was laid.  “Only the names of the elders and the heads of departments were sealed in it.  At the ground breaking ceremony Dr. Henry T. Babcock invited Miss Clara Stoddard, active in the Sunday School and in the Church work and Miss Gertrude Barka, representing the Young People to participate.  A personal side light came to the ground breaking ceremonies for the new church building.  All the prominent people about town, the church officers and many members were there.  S. P. McMurry said to his son, ‘Wilbur, get a shovel and help move some of the soil, the day may come when you will remember having taken a part in the ground breaking ceremonies.’"

At that time the building of the structure began in earnest.  It is noted that many members of the church came to town to help form the foundation and dig out the basement of the new building.  The members used teams of horses and Fresno Scrapers (a metal scoop pulled behind a team of mules which would move or remove dirt) to excavate the foundation as the cost of a steam shovel would have been prohibitive.  The church was furnished with many stained glass windows which still survive to this day.  In addition, a large leaded glass lighting fixture which came from the 1915 San Francisco Pacific Exposition was used in the sanctuary until it fell from the ceiling in 1955 and was destroyed.  The church structure was also completed with both gas and electric fixtures.  On May 13th, 1917 the now completed structure was dedicated and T. M. Morre preached the first sermon.  From 1917 to 1922 the church sanctuary served as the main meeting place for community events.  The sanctuary was used by Merced Union High School for graduation ceremonies, the Music Club used the sanctuary to host many different artists but with the restriction that there be no jazz music played or any other programs along similar lines that wouldn’t be befitting to a church building.  The bellows for the pipe organ that was originally installed for worship needed to be hand cranked.  The task fell to Kenneth Morely and Wilbur McMurry.  It was remarked that one could frequently hear the organist saying to the two men, “turn faster so that I can play.”  In 1920 that organ was replaced by an electric one at the cost of $3,750.

To this day many of the original structures of the church building exist and are used for weekly worship.  They are a lasting legacy to the founding members of the church.  But the legacy of the founding members of the church goes beyond the church building itself.  The founding members of the church had a vision for knowing, loving and serving Jesus Christ.  To that end they were willing to unite together as one church, leaving behind old structures so that the Kingdom of God could grow and expand in the city of Merced.  Their vision wasn’t tied down to any building, location or grouping.  Their vision was centered on Jesus Christ and glorifying God in all that they did.  Their legacy and vision is one that we should learn from today as we consider the next brick we are to lay in the foundation of God’s church in the world.

 

Back to top of page.