The first people to settle Alexander County were Presbyterians of Scotch-Irish descent who immigrated from Ireland to Pennsylvania, Maryland and then to North Carolina. A 1773 map shows 196 Presbyterian families living in what is now Iredell and Alexander Counties.

The first record of an organized Presbyterian Church in what is now Alexander County was the Salem Church at Hiddenite, organized in 1834. Records of the Salem Church show the following Scotch-Irish family names: Bogle, Boyd, Ervin, Lackey, Matheson, McKenzie, McLelland, Morrison, Murdock, Patterson, Stephenson and Thompson.

In addition to Scotch-Irish settlers, some Scots (Highlanders) immigrated from Scotland to what is Iredell County and formed the New Sterling Associate Reformed Presbyterian (A.R.P.) Church by 1800. Some of the Highlander families were Campbell, Matheson, McDonald, McIntosh, McKay and McLean.

In 1847, Alexander County and the Town of Taylorsville were formed.

In 1848-1849, Rev. Henry N. Pharr, Minister of the Salem Church was spending nearly one-half of his time in Taylorsville. In 1850, the Presbyterians of Taylorsville appointed a committee of trustees to buy 2 lots in Taylorsville for a site to erect a church. Lot Number 73 was conveyed to the trustees by A.C. McIntosh. The description in the deed states it was the school lot, located behind what is now the Alexander County Library on Lot Number 51.

During 1851 and 1852, many of the services of the Salem Church were held in Taylorsville at the Academy

In April of 1853, a petition was sent to Concord Presbytery to organize the Taylorsville Presbyterian Church. A committee of Rev. Henry N. Pharr, Rev. B.L. Beall and Abner Morrison (Ruling Elder of the Concord Church) was appointed to carry out the organization. On May 27, 1853, the committee met at the Taylorsville Academy with 36 former members of the Salem Church and the Taylorsville Presbyterian Church was organized. Family names included Beall, Bogle, Boyd, Coon, James, Jones, Matheson, McCree, McIntosh, McLean, Smith, Stevenson, Sumpter, Thompson and Wilson. Rev. B.L. Beall was appointed Stated Supply Minister. Ruling Elders elected were A.C. McIntosh, R.C. Wilson, Thomas S. Boyd and William Matheson.

On May 28, 1853, the new Taylorsville Church held the first sessional meeting and Mrs. Mary A. Bogle was accepted as the first new member.

Rev. Beall served as Stated Supply Minister until April 1854. For the next six years the presbytery provided numerous Supply Pastors as there was not a regular minister for the church during that time.

In an April 1855 Report to Concord Presbytery on membership and budget, the church reported: Total number of communicants - 53; Collections for denominational missions - $9.15; Foreign missions - $7.29; Raised for congregational purposes - $800.

Indications are that the first church building and the first services held in the church occurred sometime in 1856, but the exact date is not known.

In August 1859, the Rev. John Davis Wilson was called, ordained and installed as the first regular pastor of the Taylorsville Presbyterian Church. Rev. Wilson served until 1863 when he received and accepted a call from another church.

In 1864, Rev. S.C. Millen was appointed as Stated Supply Minister. He served until 1871 when he retired due to poor health.

The church again used Stated Supply Ministers to conduct services until 1880, when the church called Rev. Thomas G. Thurston as the regular minister. He served until 1884 when he and his daughter were drowned crossing the Catawba River at Oxford Ford.

Rev. W.B. Tidball was appointed Stated Supply Minister in 1884 and served until he retired in 1886 due to health problems.

The third regular pastor was Rev. A. Walker White, who served in 1887 and 1888.

A report to the Presbytery in April 1888 shows 87 communicants with 4 elders and 3 deacons, as well as, 75 members and 7 teachers in Sunday School. Records also show that Miss Junia E. Hill was elected organist for the church (May 1889); and that Atwell C. McIntosh resigned as leader of the choir and J.N. Correll was appointed in March 1890 This information would indicate the church had a good program of music in the 1880s.

Rev. A.L. Crawford served as Stated Supply Minister from 1889 until his sudden death in 1896. Rev. W.J. Tidball again served as Stated Supply Minister fromm 1896-1906. During this time, records reveal sessional meetings in the Manse (located on a one acre lot on First Ave., S.W.) and gives the value of the Manse as $800.

The first record of women's activities in the church was in 1903 in a tribute to Mrs. Dorcas P. Carson, recognizing her as the secretary of the Ladies Aid and Missionary Society from the date of its organization (probably in the 1880s).

The Presbytery again provided Stated Supply Ministers from 1906-1910. In 1908, records show the pastor's salary was $400 a year. Rev. Lynford L. Moore became the fourth regular pastor of the church in 1910.

In 1912, at a congregational meeting, a Board of Trustees (Thomas J. Sharpe; J.N. Smith, Jr.; Hayden Burke; R.L. Matheson and H.P. Feimster) was elected to sell the old church property (site of Alexander County Library), and buy property for a new church. Prior to the congregational meeting, William Bogle Matheson, an advocator to build a new church, had purchased Lots 47 and 48 in Taylorsville for $400 to be conveyed to the Presbyterian Church if it met the approval of the congregation. Although the church was built in 1913 on the present site, the deed to convey the property to the trustees was not made until 1915 when Mr. Matheson's heirs conveyed the property according to Mr. Matheson's wishes. (Mr. Matheson had died suddenly of a heart attack in 1914). The trustees sold the old church property on June 4, 1913 to Anderson and May Matheson, who remodeled the house and lived there with their children: R.Z.; Frank (Red); Jean (Mrs. Harold Rufty); Hal and Mack. According to Jean, they referred to their house as "The Church" while they lived there.

The Statistical Report to the Presbytery of April 1915 shows the Taylorsville Church with 105 communicants. Thus the church celebrated their moving to a new building with a membership of over 100 for the first time.

In October 1917, Rev. Lynford L. Moore requested and was granted a leave of absence to labor in Bluefield, W. Va. for a year. Supply Pastor Rev. H.C. Allyn, a missionary in Brazil who was home on leave, filled in until rev. Moore returned.

Inn 1921 the church parlor was the setting for a First Grade class because there was not enough room at the Taylorsville School. Taylorsville Presbyterian had agreed to provide the space for this overflow of students. Among the students who attended were Madeline Campbell (Harbinson), John Kelly (Louise Moose's brother), Swazer Campbell (Cynthia Campbell's late husband), and Dr. Thomas G. Thurston. The teacher was Mrs. Mitchell Ingram. It is interesting that Madeline Campbell Harbinson now (2003) attends classes in the church parlor 82 years later. Her Sunday School class, led by George Holleman, meets in the church parlor.

When Rev. Moore returned from West Virginia, he served the church as regular pastor until 1925. The church membership contined to grow and reached another all-time high in 1923 with 120 communicants.

In 1926, Rev. Joseph H. Carter became the fifth regular pastor and was the first minister to live in the present Manse. (The old manse was sold on September 13, 1926). Rev. Carter served until 1929 when he accepted another call.

Records of the Taylorsville Presbyterian Church show the Women's Auxiliary was organized in 1928 and Mrs. H. Coleman Payne was the first president.

Rev. A.N. Moffett was installed as regular pastor of the church in 1929. During Rev. Moffett's term, during the Depression, the church experienced more growth than in any other period. Records show total communicants of 144 in 1930 (30 were non-resident). In 1935, the membership reached 165.

In 1936, Mrs. H.T. Gryder assumed the duties of organist. She was the daughter of Mrs. J.C. Connoly who played the organ in the old church before the present church was built and played in the new church until 1927.

Rev. Moffett resigned in 1937 and accepted a call to Memphis, Tenn. In June 1937, Rev. J.C. Bridges accepted a call to the church. During his term, the congregation made improvements and additions to the church. In 1940 the addition of the education building was made possible through the generosity of Dr. J.P. Matheson in whose honor the building was named. (Dr. Matheson was the son of William Bogle Matheson, the purchaser of the present site of the church). The sanctuary was remodeled and Mrs. H. Coleman Payne (Ludy Matheson) was instrumental in getting the stained glass windows. She wrote to heirs of the old families of the church and requested that they donate funds for the windows.

In 1942, Elder H.P. Feimster and his family purchased a Hammond Organ for the church in memory of Mr. Feimster's wife, Emma. (That Hammond Organ was in service until January 2005 when it was replaced with a new state-of-the-art electronic organ).

In 1944, Rev. Bridges resigned and the church was without a regular minister until 1946 when Rev. M.J. McChesney assumed the pastorate.

During 1946, Elder H.P. Feimster resigned as Clerk of Session after serving as Clerk for 32 years and as Elder for 44 years. Also, H.C. Payne resigned as Church Treasurer after 40 years of service. Mr. Payne died in 1950 and Mrs. Payne had a new church pulpit made in his honor from some walnut timber he had owned.

Rev. L.V. McPherson became the pastor of the church on August 19, 1952. In 1953, the Taylorsville A.R.P. Church was dissolved and some members from it joined Taylorsville Presbyterian Church, increasing membership to 184 by the end of that year. In 1954, the system of rotation of Elders and Deacons was started. By 1955, membership reached 203.

On February 5, 1961, the church approved the plan of adding Sunday School rooms and a Fellowship Hall with a kitchen. The original dishes for the kitchen were bought with grocery coupons, which everyone saved and contributed. On July 5, the Weekday Kindergarten Program (the first in the county) was approved.

The first women to be officers of the church were Mrs. W.C. (Elizabeth) Patterson and Mrs. R.B. (Sophia) Campbell, Sr. They were ordained as Deacons in 1966. The first women Elders, Mrs. Ray (Elizabeth) Jennings and Mrs. J.M. (Elizabeth) Watts, were ordained in 1968.

Rev. L.V. McPherson retired as an active minister in 1968, after serving Taylorsville Presbyterian Church for 16 years, the longest term of service of any pastor in the history of the church. Rev. McPherson's son, James, entered the ministry, and was the first member of the church to do so.

Rev. James H. Sell accepted a call as pastor in June 1968. He served a 7-year term (until December 1975), then resigned to accept a call in Charlotte, NC. His daughter, Maria, became a missionary and works in orphanages in China.

In May 1976, Rev. Kenneth Mullis began his pastorate. A special Bicentennial Service was combined with regular Communion Day Services on Sunday, July 4. In August, Taylorsville Presbyterian Church honored Francis Stevenson Stikeleather by officially installing him to the office of Deacon Emeritus, the only deacon the church had so honored. Mr. Stikeleather, first installed as Deacon in March 1927, served continuously until 1954 when an injury prevented further active service.

After 15 years of operating a kindergarten, the church did not open a class in the Fall of 1976. Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Frank (Miriam/Mutt) Matheson, was honored on August 29 and a Special Gifts Fund was started in her honor. The fund was designated for use by the church in ministering to children of the community.

The first Homecoming since the Taylorsville Presbyterian Church was organized was held on Sunday, September 19, 1976. The occasion was part of a celebration honoring the former pastors and founders, installing Rev. L.V. McPherson as Pastor Emeritus, dedicating the renovated church parlor, and noting the 50th anniversary of the Manse. The former pastors who attended included Rev. and Mrs. A.N. Moffett, pastor from 1929 to 1937; Rev. and Mrs. L.V. McPherson, pastor from 1952 to 1968; and Rev. and Mrs. James H. Sell and family, pastor from 1968 to 1975. Also, Dr. and Mrs. W.M. Ford, pastor of the A.R.P. Church in Taylorsville from 1937 to 1942 came from Columbia, Tennessee.

In 1977, Taylorsville Presbyterian Church joined with Sugar Loaf School and Little River Baptist Church in sponsoring Boy Scout Troop #274.

On April 25, 1978, NC Governor James B. Hunt dedicated Alexander County's new Mental Health Building in honor of Dr. Asa Thurston, member and Ruling Elder of Taylorsville Presbyterian Church and pioneer doctor in Alexander County for more than 50 years.

At the end of November 1978, Mrs. Howard T. Gryder resigned as church organist after serving in that capacity for 42 years. In December of that same year, Mack G. Feimster, Sr. was honored by being installed as Deacon Emeritus.

Records state the membership for 1980 was 284 with 214 active, 29 inactive and 11 communing children.

In 1981, the Women of the Church had one morning circle and 3 night circles. The circles worked together and as individual circles to advance the Lord's work in the community. Bible study and fellowship had much meaning for the 104 members.

Also, in 1981, Mrs. Howard Gryder returned as organist and choir director for an additional 8 years of service. (She served a total of 50 years as organist for the church). Pastor Emeritus Rev. L.V. McPherson celebrated his 50th anniversary of his ordination into Gospel Ministry. The Session granted the Rotary Club permission to have their weekly noon meal and meeting in the Fellowship Hall.

On August 1, 1982, Rev. Mullis resigned to accept a pastorate in Goldsboro, NC.

In 1983 came the reunion of the United Presbyterian Church of the United States of America (U.P.C.U.S.A.), northen, and the Presbyterian Church in the United States (P.C.U.S.), southern. At that time the name of the women's organization changed from Women of the Church to Presbyterian Women.

Rev. John B. Stanley became the next pastor of the church in 1983. Participation in the Two-Cents per meal Program was approved by the Session in February 1984. Also, Taylorsville Presbyterian Church became incorporated and on March 11, 1984, the members of the Session signed over the deed for church property to the Corporation. Trustees of the Corporation are those serving as active Elders of the church. Mr. Rom L. Teague, Jr. was the first President of the Corporation.

In October 1986, the Taylorsville Presbyterian Church hosted the meeting of the Presbytery of Concord at East Taylorsville Baptist Church. This was only the second time that a smaller church like Taylorsville Presbyterian had hosted a presbytery meeting by utilizing the facilities of a sister denomination.

A generous and thoughtful gift from Mrs. Chancy E. Mays made possible the purchase and installation of pew cushions in the sanctuary during 1987.

Rev. Stanley had a heart attack in July of 1987 and died in November of that year. Rev. John W. Bell, Interim Pastor, and other visiting ministers supplied the pulpit until Rev. Carl W. Dumford assumed the pastorate in August 1988.

On November 1, 1989, Sharon Gettys Stanley, daughter of Rev. John B. Stanley, was ordained into ministry and the ordination service was held at Taylorsville Presbyterian Church. Sharon became the second person from the church to enter the ministry.

A project of obtaining and framing 8" X 10" pictures of every past minister of the church was completed by Waverly Moose during 1988 and 1989. This project has been on-going and the pictures are displayed on the wall in the hallway near the church office.

The church held the first Annual Family Homecoming Day on May 21, 1989.

During the Summers of 1989 and 1990, two worship services were held each Sunday morning to accomodate the church's 223 active membership. One service was at 9:00 AM and the other at 11:00 AM with Sunday School at 10:00 AM.

In 1990, 212 neew hymnals (The Presbyterian Hymnal) were purchased and dedicated for use.

A Beautification of the Grounds Project was completed by the men of the church in 1993. This included putting in and planting flower beds around the church.

In 1995, Rev. Dumford resigned and the church was without a regular minister again. Visiting ministers supplied the pulpit until Rev. Jeff Smith became the Interim Pastor.

During 1997 and 1998, all 28 windows in the Sunday School Educational Building were replaced at a cost of $270 each. Money for the windows was donated by church members in honor or memory of their loved ones. A plaque bearing the donors' names and the names of those honored and remembered hangs in the hallway of the Sunday School Educational Building for all to see.

During 1999, renovation of the Manse was completed. This included complete renovation of the kitchen, with new curtains, appliances and light fixtures; renovation of two bathrooms; and painting throughout. A new heating system was purchased for the church and a play center for the youth was constructed on the church grounds.

On November 5, 2000, Rev. Kerri M. Hefner became the first female pastor of the church and one of three female ministers in Alexander County.

In August 2002, the church opened an Academic Pre-school Program for children ages 3 and 4. The Program leaders are Mrs. Dean (Leanne) Deal, who was hired as the first part-time Youth Director in 1998, and Cindy Reese, Assistant. There is an enrollment of 12 children in the program.