The following is the latest in our series of First Presbyterian Church history. These snippets have been collected in anticipation of our 200th anniversary in 2027.
The ministry of the Rev. Thomas Castleton marked a high point in First Presbyterian Church’s early history. Even as political tensions mounted across the South, the congregation experienced a season of remarkable growth and financial stability. By 1859, membership had reached 139—the largest in the church’s history to that point. The church’s debt was paid, a manse was purchased, and the pastor’s salary was increased.
Yet the prosperity of 1859 stood in sharp contrast to the change and turmoil that was approaching. The following year, Castleton resigned his pastorate and accepted a call to another church. Supply ministers temporarily filled the pulpit as the nation moved toward Civil War.
By 1862, the conflict had reached the church’s doorstep. Union forces occupied Baton Rouge, and on August 5, the Battle of Baton Rouge brought fighting to the city. Many residents fled Baton Rouge for the relative safety of the surrounding countryside.
The disruption was reflected in the church’s own records. After a report to Presbytery in 1862, there was a gap in the surviving records until Session minutes resumed in 1866. Yet through occupation, battle and the upheaval of war, the congregation endured. First Presbyterian Church remained intact, ready to begin a new chapter when peace finally returned.
