First Church’s Fourth Era continues

On May 18, 1925, the Tulsa Tribune announced the “Fourth Era to Begin” for First Presbyterian Church, Tulsa (FPC). FPC was just 40 years old, and its new sanctuary  was the third built and consecrated for worship by the church. In the article, Rev.  Dr. C. W. Kerr, pastor from 1900-1941, identified the formation of a congregation  “from the door of the J. M. Hall store” to the official organization of the church by “13 members, all Indians” as the first milestone in FPC history. 

After its official organization in 1885, the church met in the First Mission School  until its second era beginning in 1900, defined by the building of the “little church at Fourth and Boston,” having “150 chairs in it and two homemade benches.” In 1911,  FPC moved to Seventh and Boston, its third milestone, before moving into the “magnificent Gothic church” that was built beside it in 1925. 

The week before the dedication of the new sanctuary, Dr. Kerr dedicated the original auditorium at Seventh and Boston as a Presbyterian chapel, declaring its site as Holy Ground: “It is Holy Ground because of the wedding vows taken here and the funerals preached from it. For 203 of our membership have joined the innumerable hosts in these 14 years.”

In the week prior to the current sanctuary’s dedication, FPC held what was, at  the time, the largest banquet in Tulsa’s history. At the banquet, hosted in the new dining room of the church, the Associate Secretary for the Board of National Missions for the Presbyterian Church, Rev. Dr. A. F. McGarrah observed that FPC had built “three churches in 25 years and each twice as large as its predecessor.” He also stated that, for several years prior to 1925, the average Sunday school attendance was between 1,600 and 1,800, and he predicted that in three years it would be 2,000 and the average church service attendance would be 2,500. 

At the time, FPC was the eighth largest church in the denomination based on a membership of more than 2,800, and McGarrah predicted, “it will be in third place within five years if it continues its present growth.” (At its membership peak, FPC reached 2nd in 1948 with a membership of over 5,000, and is currently ranked approximately 30th in the denomination,  with 1,602 members)

Recounting the week long dedication celebration

Dedication Sunday, May 24, 1925
The new sanctuary was officially dedicated “to the Glory of God and service to mankind” by Rev. Dr. H. C. Swearingen, former Moderator of the General Assembly, in a sermon delivered on Sunday May 24, 1925. The formal opening of the new building included a week of dedicatory events, with a different ceremony each day. 

Monday, May 25, 1925
On the Monday following Sunday’s dedication, selections from Handel’s Messiah — “perhaps the greatest oratorio ever composed” — were performed in the Sanctuary. The Tulsa Tribune reported on the event, describing, “From the hopeful promise to a people in distress …through the pathos of the crucifixion … to the triumphant shout of the Hallelujah chorus, the program last night held the audience entranced.”

Tuesday, May 26, 1925
Tuesday evening, the church kept an open house and invited
the whole city to inspect the new building. The tour was preceded
by a short program with addresses and congratulations from
both Mayor Herman Newblock and the University of Tulsa’s
President, Franklin Dill, who, recognizing the church’s prominent
role in the community, stated, “the school has ever looked to this
congregation for support and guidance in its work.”

Wednesday, May 27, 1925
Wednesday featured a dedication of memorials, given to perpetuate the memory of a loved one, including furnishings ranging from drinking fountains to a classroom, a communion table, and tower chimes. The ceremony was preceded by an address by J. M. Hall, the “Father of Presbyterianism in Tulsa,” who recounted that the wife of a carpenter organized the first Sunday school class in 1883, and in 1884 the first mission school was established by members of the Presbyterian faith. From 1887 to 1901, his wife, Mrs. Hall, was superintendent, teacher, organist, and member of the mission choir.

Thursday, May 28, 1925
On Thursday evening, the church staged an educational pageant written for the occasion called, “The Search for the Light,” to tell of the progress of religion. The followers of various world religions pass before “America” and her people, with “Christianity” entering when the angel chorus announced the birth of Christ.  This entrance was followed by the “Church,” with this part taken by Dr. Kerr.

Friday, May 29, 1925
On Friday, a dedicatory organ recital was given by Ernest Prang Stamm, a concert organist of St. Louis. Stamm was a favorite musician of Tulsans ever since he was organist at the First Christian Church in Tulsa. His recital varied from “the dainty and amusing whimsy of ‘The Musical Snuff Box’ to Yon’s stirring work, ‘Hymn of Glory,’ dedicated to the American Legion.” Rounding out the week’s dedication events, an encore rendition of Handel’s “Messiah” oratorio was given in the afternoon on Sunday, May 31.

The Tulsa Tribune summarized the congratulations to FPC of that week’s dedicatory addresses: “A beautiful church perfectly equipped, with a congregation not given to quarreling with other congregations over expressions of faith, and a pastor who for more than a quarter century has entered into the religious and civic life of Tulsa with the same enthusiasm and executive ability with which he guided his own congregation.” A hundred years later, may we, in this same spirit and tradition, come to the sanctuary to “Enter to worship–depart to serve.”