Frances Presbyterian - Marked In Time

Frances Presbyterian Church held it's 100th Anniversary Celebration of the church on June 7, 2009. The tiny community of Frances is located about 7 miles south of Marion on S.R. 70.

In December 1908, Rev. James F. Price and Rev. A.J. Thompson held a series of evangelistic services at Oliver School near Frances under the auspices of the Crayne Presbyterian Church.

Accordingly on the afternoon of February 25, 1909, the group who had petitioned the Presbytery to organize them into a church, met again with thirty-five charter members.

The church was dedicated in 1910. The building was built on land donated by George L. Whitt, who also donated the land for the cemetery. The first pastor was the Rev. A. J. Thompson, who served for many years. Some of the early active members were the Matthews, Pogue, and Whitt families.

On June 7, 2009 at the 100th Anniversary nearly 100 people attended the services. The church grounds, home to 28 members and an average congregation of 25, hosted an array of activities to mark the centennial festivities, including burial of a time capsule by pastors Butch Gray, and A. C. Hodge to mark the occasion.

A granite marker donated by Henry and Henry Monuments in Marion will forever denote the location of the underground museum. (shown in the photo above)

Also in attendance that day was D. E. Owen, who was honored as the person with the longest membership, who has been on the rolls for 75 years. The congregation's oldest member, however, is Elsie Stone, who is 87.