PCA HISTORICAL CENTER
Archives and Manuscript Repository for the Continuing Presbyterian Church

Manuscript Collections :
Synthetic Collections :

BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR READING IN
PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH HISTORY

The following bibliography is a work in progress. It is not at this time comprehensive. Many of the books listed in this bibliography are housed in the reading room of the PCA Historical Center, as indicated by "HC" in brackets at the end of a particular entry.
As we work to complete this collection, we welcome the donation of additional books on Presbyterian history, and if you would care to make such a donation, please contact us.

Overview:

The various denominations which make up the whole of American Presbyterianism can be divided into two basic traditions. The larger is that of the American tradition, which traces its origin back to the formation of the first Presbytery on No
rth American soil, established in 1706. This body then develops into what becomes known as the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. Other denominations listed in that tradition are either direct or indirect splits from the PCUSA.
The other, smaller lineage is that of the Scottish dissenting churches. Two distincts strands are brought to American soil: the Associate and the Reformed. Subsequent mergers in this Scottish tradition produce the Associate Reformed and the United Presbyterian Churches.
The list of churches shown below is also not intended to be exhaustive of all the many Presbyterian denominations which have at one time or another existed. However, most of the main bodies are included here.


Click the links below to jump to a specific section of the bibliography:

General Background on Presbyterian History History of the Conservative Movement of the 20th Century
Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), 1973 - [ongoing]
American tradition
Scottish dissenting tradition
Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., [1706-1958]
= Old Side/New Side split [1741-1758
= Old School/New School split [1837-1869]
Associate Presbytery of Pennsylvania [1751-1782]
Reformed Presbytery [1774-1782]
Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 1810 - [ongoing] Reformed Presbyterian Church, [1798-1833]
Presbyterian Church in the U.S. (PCUS) - [1861-1983] Reformed Presbyterian Church, General Synod, [1833-1965]
Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC), 1936 - [ongoing] Reformed Presbyterian Church in North America, 1833-ongoing

Bible Presbyterian Church, 1937 - [ongoing]

Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, 1782 - [ongoing]

Blended traditions
United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., 1958-1983 Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod, 1965-1982
Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., 1983 - [ongoing] Presbyterian Church in America, 1973 - [ongoing]
Evangelical Presbyterian Church, 1982 - [ongoing]  
"Micro-denominations"
American Presbyterian Church (APC) Presbyterian Reformed Church (PRC), 1965 - [ongoing]
Reformed Presbyterian Church in the U.S. (RPCUS)  

General Background:

  • Briggs, Charles Augustus, American Presbyterianism: its origin and early history : together with an appendix of letters and documents, many of which have recently been discovered, (New York: Charles Scribner, 1885), xviii, 373, cxlii p., [2] leaves of plates (1 folded) : ill. ; 21 cm. [HC]
  • Hays, George P., Presbyterians: A Popular Narrative of their Origin, Progress, Doctrines, and Achievements, (New York: J.A. Hill & Company, Publishers, 1892), 544pp. Focuses on the PCUSA lineage, but has chapters on several of the other American Presbyterian denominations. [HC]
  • Kerr, Robert P., The People's History of Presbyterianism in All Ages, (Richmond, VA: Presbyterian Committee of Publication, 1888), 284pp. A broader treatment of Presbyterianism printed by the Southern Presbyterian Church, this work covers the development of the Presbyterian form of church government, the establishment of Presbyterian Churches worldwide and the history of American Presbyterianism up to the late 1880s. Kerr does not arrive on American soil until page 180. [HC]
  • Patterson, Robert Mayne, American Presbyterianism in Its Development and Growth, (Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication and Sabbath-School Work, 1896), 132pp. [HC]
  • Plumley, G.S. [editor], The Presbyterian Church throughout the World, from the Earliest to the Present Times, in a Series of Biographical and Historical Sketches, (New York: De Witt C. Lent & Company, 1874), 792pp. Touches on the foundations of Presbyterian polity in Scripture and then quickly moves to the history of Presbyterianism as practiced by the Waldensians, and then to the history of Presbyterian churches in Scotland, Ireland, England, Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Austria and Hungary. The larger portion of the book is spent on American Presbyterianism (pages 112ff.), with scant mention of Churches other than the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. Chapter 11, part I, "Historical Sketches After 1837," was authored by Samuel Miller. [HC]

History of the Conservative Presbyterian Movement in the 20th Century:

From the conservative perspective:

  • Marsden, George M., "Perspective on the Division of 1937." Pressing Toward the Mark: Essays Commemorating Fifty Years of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Edited by Charles G. Dennison & Richard C. Gamble. Philadelphia: The Committee for the Historian of The Orthodox Presbyterian Church, 1986, pp. 295-328.
  • North, Gary, Crossed Fingers: How the Liberals Captured the Presbyterian Church, (Tyler, TX: Institute for Christian Economics, 1996), 1096pp, indexed. North's magnum opus, exploring the demise of conservative theology in the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. and the subsequent formation of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and the Bible Presbyterian Church. Helpful timeline inside the front and back covers. North offers from his unique perspective several strategies for preventing similar future problems. [HC]
  • Rian, Edwin H., The Presbyterian Conflict, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1940), 342pp. and (Philadelphia: The Committee for the Historian [OPC], 1992), 242pp., indexed. [HC]
  • Smith, Morton H., How is the Gold Become Dim: The Decline of the Presbyterian Church U.S., as Reflected in its Assembly Actions. 2nd edition. (Jackson, MS: Steering Committee for the Continuing Presbyterian Church, 1973), 448pp. [HC]
  • Smith, Morton H., "Chapter 1: A Survey of Southern Presbyterian History," "Chapter IV: The Theological Thought of James Henley Thornwell," and "Chapter V: The Theological Thought of Robert Lewis Dabney." in Studies in Southern Presbyterian Theology, (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Company, 1987), pp. 1-44, 121-182, 183-216. [HC]
  • Wells, David F., editor, Reformed Theology in America: A History of Its Modern Development, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1985).

From the modernist perspective:

  • Coalter, Milton J., et al., The Confessional Mosaic: Presbyterians and Twentieth Century Theology (Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1990), 333pp., indexed. Includes a chapter on the Presbyterian Church in America by Rick Nutt (pages 236-256), as well as chapters on pluralism, confessionalism, worship, hymnody, devotional literature and social issues. [HC]
  • Loetscher, Lefferts A., The Broadening Church: A Study of Theological Issues in the Presbyterian Church Since 1869. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1954. [HC]
  • Longfield, Bradley J., The Presbyterian Controversy: Fundamentalists, Modernists and Moderates (New York, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991). [HC]
  • Weston, William, Presbyterian Pluralism: Competition in a Protestant House, (Knoxville, TN: The University of Tennessee Press, 1997).

History of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), 1973 - [ongoing]
[Most of the books in this category can be ordered from the Christian Education and Publications Bookstore.]

  • Cannada, Robert C. and W. Jack Williamson, The Historic Polity of the PCA, (Greenville, SC: A Press, 1997). [HC]
  • Clements, Don K., Historical Roots of the Presbyterian Church in America. Narrows, VA: Metokos Press, 2006. Pb, xvi, 250 p.
  • Kornegay, Jerry, editor, Living History of the Presbyterian Church in America, (St. Louis, MO: The PCA Historical Center, 1994). [Available from the PCA Historical Center; price: $2.50ppd.] [HC]
  • Lucas, Sean Michael, For a Continuing Church : The Roots of the Presbyterian Church in America. Phillipsburg, New Jersey : P&R Publishing, 2015. xviii, 373 p.
  • Lucas, Sean Michael, On Being Presbyterian : Our Beliefs, Practices, and Stories. Phillipsburg, NJ : P&R Pub. Co., 2006.
  • Richards, John Edward, The Historical Birth of the Presbyterian Church in America. (Liberty Hill, SC: The Liberty Press, 1987), 452pp., indexed. [HC]
  • Settle, Paul G., To God All Praise and Glory: 1973 to 1998 - The First 25 Years, (Atlanta, GA: PCA Administrative Committee, 1998), 94pp., indexed. [HC]
  • Smartt, Kennedy, I Am Reminded: An Autobiographical Anecdotal History of the PCA, 228pp., indexed. [HC]
  • Smith, Frank Joseph, The History of the Presbyterian Church in America: Silver Anniversary Edition.. (Lawrenceville, GA: Presbyterian Scholars Press, 1999), 607pp, indexed. [HC]
  • Denominational Web site: http://www.pcanet.org/
  • Denominational Archives: PCA Historical Center, St. Louis, MO.

American tradition:

Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. (PCUSA), [1706 - 1958] ; United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. [1958 - 1983]; Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. [1983 - ongoing]

  • Gillett, Ezra H., History of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., (Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1864), 2 volumes, 1206pp.
  • Hodge, Charles, The Constitutional History of the Presbyterian Church in United States of America, (Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1851), Part I, 1705-1741, 215pp. and Part II, 1741-1788, 425pp. [HC]
  • Loetscher, Lefferts A., A Brief History of the Presbyterians. Fourth edition. With a new chapter by George Laird Hunt. Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1983. [HC]
  • Patton, Jacob Harris, A Popular History of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (New York: R.S. Mighill and Company, 1900), 561pp., indexed. [HC]
  • Slosser, Gaius Jackson, editor. They Seek a Country: The American Presbyterians, Some Aspects. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1955. [HC]
  • Smylie, James H., A Brief History of the Presbyterians, (Louisville, KY: Geneva Press, 1996), 160pp., indexed. Brief overview focusing almost entirely on the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. [HC]
  • Denominational Web site: http://www.pcusa.org
  • Denominational Archives: Presbyterian Historical Society, Philadelphia, PA.

Old School - New School Split [1837 - 1869]

  • A History of the Division of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., by a Committee of the Synod of New York and New Jersey, (New York: M.W. Dodd, 1852), 278pp. [New School account]
  • " 'Old and New School' Theology," in The Presbyterian Quarterly Review, Volume VIII, Number 31 (January 1860), pages 353-399. [The Quarterly was a New School publication]
  • Atwater, Lyman, " "Bibliotheca Sacra and Biblical Repository for July 1863; Art. III. Doctrines of the New-School Presbyterian Church. By Rev. George Duffield.." in Biblical Repertory and Princeton Review, volume 39, number 4 (October 1867).
  • Brown, Isaac V., A Historical Vindication of the Abrogation of the Plan of Union by the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, (Philadelphia: Wm. S. & Alfred Martien, 1855), 325pp. [Old School account]
  • Cheeseman, Lewis, Differences between Old and New School Presbyterians, (Rochester, NY: Published by Erastus Darrow, 1848), 224pp.
  • Dabney, Robert Lewis, "The Presbyterian Reunion, North," in Southern Presbyterian Review, volume 22, number 3 (July 1871) 379-406.
  • Hodge, Charles, Act and Testmony, in Biblical Repertory and Princeton Review, volume 6, number 4 (October 1834) 505-522 and volume 7, number 1 (January 1835) 110-134.
  • __________, "General Assembly of 1837," in Biblical Repertory and Princeton Review, volume 9, number 3 (July 1837)
  • ____________, "Presbyterian Reunion. By the Rev. Henry B. Smith, D.D. Reprinted from the 'American Presbyterian and Theological Review,' October 1867" in Biblical Repertory and Princeton Review, volume 40, number 1 (January 1868).
  • __________, "Principles of Church Union, and the Reunion of the Old and New-school Presbyterians," in Biblical Repertory and Princeton Review, volume 37, number 2 (April 1865).
  • Loetscher, Frederick William, Fifty Years: The Reunion of the Old and New School Presbyterian Churches, 1870-1920 [fiftieth anniversary retrospective], 40pp.
  • MacCormac, Earl R., "Presbyterian Schism of 1837 and Missions, Church History, 32:32-45.
  • Marsden, George M., The Evangelical Mind and the New School Presbyterian Experience: A Case Study of Thought and Theology in Nineteenth-Century America, (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1970), 278pp.
  • ________________, The New School Presbyterian Mind: A Study of Theology in Mid-nineteenth Century America, (New Haven, CT: Yale University, 1966), 343pp., [Ph.D. dissertation]
  • Presbyterian Reunion: A Memorial Volume, 1837-1871, (New York:
  • Tyler, Bennet, Letters on the Origin and Progress of the New Haven Theology, (New York: Robert Carter and Ezra Collier, 1837), 180pp.
  • Wood, James, Old and New Theology, or, The Doctrinal Differences which have Agitated and Divided the Presbyterian Church, (Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication, 2nd edition, 1855), 262pp.

Cumberland Presbyterian Church (CPC), 1810 - [ongoing]

Presbyterian Church in the U.S. (PCUS, aka Southern Presbyterian Church) [1861 - 1983]

  • Johnson, Thomas Cary, History of the Southern Presbyterian Church, (New York: The Christian Literature Company, 1894) 178pp. [HC]
  • Lilly, David Clay, D.D., Faith of Our Fathers, (Richmond, VA and Texarkana, Ark.-Tex.: Presbyterian Committee of Publication, 1935), 143pp. [HC]
  • Long, Roswell C., The Story of Our Church, (Richmond, VA: Whittet and Shepperson, 1932) 188pp. [HC]
  • Thompson, Ernest Trice, Presbyterians in the South, in three volumes (Richmond, VA: John Knox Press, 1963 and 1973) 629pp., 528pp.and 636pp. respectively, all volumes indexed. The definitive history of the Southern Presbyterian Church. [HC]
  • Denominational Archives: Was the Presbyterian Historical Society, Montreat, NC office [formerly the Presbyterian Historical Foundation]. This office is now closed as of 2008 and the collections have been relocated to either the Presbyterian Historical Society in Philadelphia, or to the Archives at the Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, GA.
    Primarily it was the congregational records that were relocated to Decatur.

Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC), 1936 - [ongoing]

  • Churchill, Robert King, Lest We Forget: A Personal Reflection on the Formation of The Orthodox Presbyterian Church. (Philadelphia: The Committee for the Historian of The Orthodox Presbyterian Church, 1986, 3rd edition, 1997), 135pp. [HC]
  • Dennison, Charles G. and Richard C. Gamble, editors, Pressing Toward the Mark: Essays Commemorating Fifty Years of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (Philadelphia: The Committee for the Historian of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, 1986), 489pp. Essays by Charles G. Dennison, George W. Knight, III, Richard B. Gaffin, Jr., Peter A. Lillback, Edmund P. Clowney, Samuel T. Logan, Jr., George M. Marsden, Mark A. Noll, D. Clair Davis, Greg L. Bahnsen, John P. Galbreath, Leonard J. Coppes, et. al.; Bibliography of the Writings of J. Gresham Machen.
  • Dennison, Charles G., The Orthodox Presbyterian Church: 1936 - 1986 [50th anniversary volume] (Philadelphia: The Committee for the Historian, 1986), 357pp. Histories of OPC agencies, presbyteries, churches and ministers. [HC]
  • Hart, D.G., Between the Times: The Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Transition, 1945-1990. Willow Grove, PA: The Committee for the Historian of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, 2011. Hb, xii, 340 p., indexed.
  • Hart, D.G. and John Muether, Fighting the Good Fight: A Brief History of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (Philadelphia: Committee on Christian Education and The Committee for the Historian, 1995), 217pp., indexed. [HC]
  • Marsden, Robert S., The First Ten Years (Philadelphia: The Committee on Home Missions and Church Extension, 1946) 104pp. Essays by Robert Marsden [3-14] and John H. Skilton [14-19]; histories of churches and ministers. [HC]
  • Muether, John R. and Danny E. Olinger, Confident of Better Things: Essays Commemorating Seventy-Five Years of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Willow Grove, PA: The Committee for the Historian of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, 2011. Hb, vi, 520 p., indexed.
  • Denominational Web site: http://www.opc.org
  • Denominational Archives were housed at the OPC denominational offices in Willow Grove, PA.

Bible Presbyterian Church, [1937 - ongoing].
The Bible Presbyterian Church begins as a small group of pastors split from the newly formed Presbyterian Church of America (later renamed the Orthodox Presbyterian Church) over their concern to take a stronger stand against beverage alcohol and for the historic premillennial position. The BPC later splits in 1956 into the Columbus Synod and the smaller Collingswood Synod. The Columbus Synod wing of the BPC renames itself the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in 1961 and then gives up that identity as it merges with the Reformed Presbyterian Church, General Synod in 1965 to form the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod (RPCES). The RPCES in 1982 merged into the Presbyterian Church in America. Meanwhile, the Collingswood Synod of the BPC, which was that portion loyal to the leadership of Dr. Carl McIntire, experienced another split in 1984. The larger portion of this split took the name Bible Presbyterian Church, General Synod, and it is this latter group which is ongoing.

  • Harden, Margaret G., A Brief History of the Bible Presbyterian Church, (Collingswood, NJ: Christian Beacon Press, 1967), 157pp. [HC]
  • Laman, Clarence, God calls a man: to spread abroad the word of God and to unite the testimony of Jesus. (n.p., 1959), 47pp. A short biography of Carl McIntire. [HC]
  • McIntire, Carl, The Bible Presbyterian Church: Its Witness and Its Agencies, (Collingswood, NJ: The Twentieth Century Reformation Hour, 1971), 16pp. [HC]
  • St. John, Marshall C., A History and Analysis of the Bible Presbyterian Church, 1936-1987, (St. Louis, MO: Covenant Theological Seminary, 1987; D.Min dissertation), 209pp. [HC]
  • Denominational Web site: http://www.bpc.org
  • No known denominational archivess.
  • See also:
    1. Rhoads, Gladys Titzck and Nancy Titzck Anderson, McIntire: Defender of Faith and Freedom. Maitland, FL: Xulon Press, 2012. Hb, 600 p.
    2. Ruotsila, Markku, Fighting Fundamentalist: Carl McIntire and the Politicization of American Fundamentalism. New York: Oxford University Press, 2016. Hb, 403 p.

American Presbyterian Church (APC), 1977 - [ongoing]

Scottish dissenting church tradition:

Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church (ARP), 1782 - [ongoing]

  • Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, Bicentennial Supplement: Our Dream Book, 1782 - 1982, (Greenville, SC: Associate Reformed Presbyterian Center, 1983), 514pp. [HC]
  • Galloway, J.C., et al., The Centennial History of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church: 1803 - 1903, (Charleston, SC: Presses of Walker, Evans & Cogswell Co., 1905) reprinted in 1983 by the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church Bicentennial Celebration Committee (Greenville, SC: Associate Reformed Presbyterian Center, 1983), 750pp. [HC]
  • King, Ray A., A History of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, (Charlotte, NC: Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, 1966), 132pp. Published as part of the Covenant Life Curriculum. [HC]
  • Lathan, Robert, History of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Synod of the South, 1782-1882, (Harrisburg, PA: Published for the Author, 1882; reprinted in 1983 by the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church Bicentennial Celebration Committee (Greenville, SC: Associate Reformed Presbyterian Center, 1983), 418pp. [HC]
  • Oates, Mrs. Julia and Mrs. Alice H. Skelton, Woman's Work in the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, (Greenville, SC: Associate Reformed Presbyterian Center, 1983), 362pp. [HC]
  • Ruble. Randall T., editor, The Bicentennial History of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, 1950-2003, (Grand Rapids, MI: McNaughton & Gunn, 2003), 696pp.
  • Ware, Lowry and James W. Gettys, The Second Century: A History of the Associate Reformed Presbyterians, 1882 - 1982, (Greenville, SC: Associate Reformed Presbyterian Center, 1983), 555pp. [HC]
  • Denominational Web site: http://www.arpsynod.org/
  • Denominational Archives are maintained at the Montreat Office of the Presbyterian Historical Center under a cooperative arrangement.

Reformed Presbyterian Church in North America, General Synod (RPCGS) [1833 - 1965]

Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, Synod (RPCNA) 1833 - [ongoing].
Known also as the "Covenanters", though by the end of the 20th century, the denomination has relinquished most of the historic Covenanter doctrines other than exclusive Psalmody.

  • Carson, David Melville, A History of the Reformed Presbyterian Church in America to 1871, (Ann Arbor, MI: University Microfilms, Inc.), 255pp., 1964 Ph.D. dissertation for the University of Pennsylvania.
  • Delivuk, John Allen, The Doctrine and History of Worship in the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, (Pittsburgh, PA: Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary, 1982), 185pp., S.T.M. thesis for Concordia Theological Seminary, St. Louis, MO.
  • Fox, Chester R., A Brief History of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, Revised and Reprinted, (Pittsburgh, PA: Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, 1964), 43pp.
  • Denominational Web site: http://www.reformedpresbyterian.org/
  • Denominational Archives are housed at the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary, Pittsburgh, PA.

United Presbyterian Church in North America (UPCNA), [1858 - 1958].
The UPCNA was formed out of a merger of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian and Reformed Presbyterian Churches. In 1958 the UPCNA went out of existence as it merged with the PCUSA, creating a new entity known as the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. (UPCUSA). Then in 1983, the UPCUSA merged with the PCUS (aka Southern Presbyterian Church). With this last merger, the resulting Church returned to the old historic name, the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A.

  • Jamison, Wallace N., The United Presbyterian Story: A Centennial Study, 1858-1958, (Pittsburgh, PA: The Geneva Press, 253pp. [HC]
  • McCulloch, W.E., The United Presbyterian Church and Its Work in America, (Pittsburgh, PA: Board of Home Missions of the United Presbyterian Church of North America, 1925), 258pp.
  • Reid, William J., United Presbyterianism, (Pittsburgh, PA: United Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1900), 192pp.
  • Scouller, James Brown, A Manual of the United Presbyterian Church of North America, 1751-1887, Second Edition, revised and enlarged, (Pittsburgh, PA: United Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1887), 718pp. Includes brief histories of the denominations portions of which merged to form the UPCNA: Reformed Presbyterian, Associate Presbyterian and Associate Reformed Presbyterian Churches. [HC: 1881 edition]
  • Scouller, James Brown, History of the United Presbyterian Church of North America, pages 145-255 in Volume XI of The American Church History Series, (New York: The Christian Literature Company, 1894).
  • Williamson, C.J., March On! with the United Presbyterian Church of North America, (Pittsburg, PA: Board of Administration of the United Presbyterian Church, 1933), 236pp.
  • Denominational Archives are housed, by virtue of the 1958 merger with the PCUSA, in Philadelphia at the Presbyterian Historical Society.

Presbyterian Reformed Church (PRC), 1965 - [ongoing]

Blended traditions:

Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod, [1965 - 1982].
The RPC,ES was formed by the union of the Reformed Presbyterian Church, General Synod, out of the Scottish dissenting tradition, with the Colubus Synod wing of the Bible Presbyterian Church (renamed Evangelical Presbyterian Church), which was derived from the American tradition of the Northern Presbyterian Church (the PCUSA).

  • Clark, Nancy Elizabeth, A History of the Reformed Presbyterian Church (Indianapolis, IN: Butler University, 1966), Master of Arts thesis, 103pp.
  • Cross, Thomas G., Historical Background and Development of the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod, (Wilmington, DE: Self-published, 1968), 26pp. Overview of denominational history. [HC]
  • Hutchinson, George P., The History Behind the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod, (Cherry Hill, NJ: Mack Publishing Company, 1974), 448pp., indexed. Wide-ranging coverage of American Presbyterianism and the events leading up to the formation of the RPCES, histories of the two denominations merging to form the RPCES and a brief call to future growth and development. Click here to view the book's table of contents. [HC]
  • Denominational Archives are housed at the PCA Historical Center, St. Louis, MO.

History of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), 1973 - [ongoing]

Books--
  • Cannada, Robert C. and W. Jack Williamson, The Historic Polity of the PCA, (Greenville, SC: A Press, 1997). [HC]
  • Clements, Don K., Historical Roots of the Presbyterian Church in America. Narrows, VA: Metokos Press, 2006. Pb, xvi, 250 p.
  • Kornegay, Jerry, editor, Living History of the Presbyterian Church in America, (St. Louis, MO: The PCA Historical Center, 1994). [Available from the PCA Historical Center; price: $2.50ppd.] [HC]
  • Lucas, Sean Michael, For a Continuing Church : The Roots of the Presbyterian Church in America. Phillipsburg, New Jersey : P&R Publishing, 2015. xviii, 373 p.
  • ________________, On Being Presbyterian : Our Beliefs, Practices, and Stories. Phillisburg, NJ: P&R Publishing Co., 2006.
  • Richards, John Edward, The Historical Birth of the Presbyterian Church in America. (Liberty Hill, SC: The Liberty Press, 1987), 452pp., indexed. [HC]
  • Settle, Paul G., To God All Praise and Glory: 1973 to 1998 - The First 25 Years, (Atlanta, GA: PCA Administrative Committee, 1998), 94pp., indexed. [HC]
  • Smartt, Kennedy, I Am Reminded: An Autobiographical Anecdotal History of the PCA, 228pp., indexed. [HC]
  • Smith, Frank Joseph, The History of the Presbyterian Church in America: Silver Anniversary Edition.. (Lawrenceville, GA: Presbyterian Scholars Press, 1999), 607pp, indexed. [HC]

Articles--
The Presbyterian Guardian, 43.1 (January 1974) 2-12. The bulk of this issue focuses on the new denomination. Articles include 1. "Why We Are Leaving," by Paul G. Settle, pp. 1-3; 2. "Have the separatists done all that bad?," by G. Aiken Taylor, pg. 3; 3. "Gathered for the Glory of God," by W. Jack Williamson; 4. A Message to All Churches, pp. 8-9; 5. A Reborn Testimony in a Reborn Church, by John J. Mitchell, pp. 10-11; 6. Resolution on Interchurch Relations, pg. 12.

Articles by authors outside of the PCA:

  • DeJong, Peter, "The Presbyterian Church in America," in The Outlook [Grand Rapids, MI], 28.5 (May 1978): 14-16.
  • Nutt, Rick, "The Tie that No Longer Binds: The Origins of the Presbyterian Church in America," in The Confessional Mosaic: Presbyterians and Twentieth-Century Theology, edited by Milton J. Coalter, John M. Mulder and Louis B. Weeks, (Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1990), pages 236-256. [HC]
  • Winter, R. Milton and William H. Berger, "Duck Hill's Church of the Pilgrim: St. Andrew Presbytery's "Non-Geographic Parish" During Mississippi's PCA Realignment (1974-1982), Journal of Presbyterian History, 81.1 (Spring 2003) 55-58. [HC]

Other resources--

Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC), 1982 - [ongoing] No published histories of this denomination are noted at this point. A brief history of the denomination can be found on the denominational website, at http://www.epc.org/

  • No known denominational archives.

Missouri:
Hall, Joseph H., Presbyterian Conflict and Resolution on the Missouri Frontier, (Lewiston, NY & Queenston, Ontario: The Edward Mellen Press, 1987). Volume 26 of the Studies in American Religion series.213pp., indexed.

 

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