Photos by Anne Keegan.

On April 21, First Presbyterian Church of Tuscumbia, Alabama, celebrated its 200th anniversary. The weekend celebration was one of its largest gatherings in the church’s history. The sanctuary with seating for 300 was filled to capacity. The festivities included a hymn sing led by Daniel Cason, pianist at Briarwood Presbyterian Church, and Sunday worship Ligon Duncan preached on the weekend’s theme verse, Psalm 115:1, “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory … .”

The church particularized on April 13, 1824, with 13 charter members. The building was erected in 1824, and the church retains a copy of the land grant signed by President James Monroe. In 1880 Helen Keller was baptized at the church, and members of the Keller family attended the church for generations.

Over its two centuries First Pres has sent many sons from the church into pastoral ministry, including Randy Kimbrough, Andrew Siegenthaler, and George Robertson. Robertson is senior pastor of Second Presbyterian Church (EPC) in Memphis; Siegenthaler is a pastor at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church; and Kimbrough recently retired after more than 35 years in pastoral ministry.