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Proclamation congratulating the Bethel Presbyterian Church upon the momentous occasion of its 240th anniversary.
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WHEREAS, Bethel Presbyterian Church, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, is celebrating their 240th Anniversary on Sunday, November 6, 2016; and
WHEREAS, Bethel Presbyterian Church was founded by Reverend John McMillan on November 5, 1776 when he preached and baptized 5 children at Peter’s Creek. Early services were held at the home of Oliver Miller, in what is now South Park. In 1785, the church’s first pastor, the Reverend John Clark renamed the Eastern congregation to Lebanon and the Western congregation to Bethel, reflecting biblical names. Oliver Miller’s son, James, inherited his father’s homestead and in 1808, he replaced the log cabin with a stone house, now known as the Oliver Miller Homestead, a national historic landmark; and
WHEREAS, Bethel Presbyterian Church’s first meeting house was built in 1779 on ground purchased from Nathan Couch; a second house was erected in 1826 near Bethel Cemetery, which holds the remains of 14 Revolutionary War soldiers, to accommodate the growing congregation; the third was built in 1855 on the site of the present church. Bethel Presbyterian Church was officially incorporated on March 11, 1907 and the present church building was completed in May 1910. In 1951, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission erected a historical marker, noting its connection to Rev. John McMillan and its historic importance; and
WHEREAS, in 1794, the first gunshots of the Whiskey Rebellion were fired on the Oliver Miller Homestead and a number of members of Bethel Presbyterian Church played roles in the Whiskey Insurrection; and
WHEREAS, Bethel Presbyterian Church has been blessed by the leadership of thirteen installed pastors. There have been many changes and many faces who have passed through the church over the years, but the mission and activities of the Church have been maintained by its committed and de...
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