A Brief History of the North Jackson Church of Christ
The first record of the Lord's church meeting in Jackson, Tennessee was in 1898 when five members met in the home of brother and sister J. R. Wilkinson at 1008 Highland Street. They soon made arrangements to meet in the Phythian Building on Main Street.
In July 1909, the small group moved into a house built on a lot at the Southeast corner of Highland and Grand Avenue. That same year Brother G. A. Dunn came to Jackson to conduct a gospel meeting. By that time, the church had become a nice little congregation of about fifty members.
The building stood until 1929 when a brick building was erected. Young men from Freed-Hardeman College in Henderson often came to lead the worship services. Gospel meetings were a frequent occurrence, and they often lasted for two or three weeks.
When brother T. B. Larrimore came for a meeting, services were conducted for an entire month. Other notable speakers in gospel meetings have been J. D. Tant, Foy E. Wallace, Jr., Ira Doublin, G. C. Brewer, Guy N. Woods, Tom Holland, and Billy Smith.
The congregation met in the brick building at 718 Highland until 1955. Then they occupied a new building at the corner of Allen and Edgewood Streets. Under the faithful and capable leadership of elders, this group of Christians preached the simple truth of New Testament Christianity and emphasized mission works in numerous places throughout the world.
At Home, the congregation was a leader in establishing the West Tennessee Children's Home. It has also encouraged many young preachers from Freed-Hardeman University by having them work with the church. Some of these include Steve Parsons, Gene Gilliland, Gary Hampton, Les Jackson, Ken Kilpatrick, Cameron Traw, Andy Masters, Kelcy Hahn, David Powell, and Miles Mayo.
Local ministers have served this congregation well. They were T. M. Carney (1912), John T. Smith, C. S. Austin, W. S. Long, L. S. Lancaster, F. O. Howell, W. T. Hines, E. R. Harper, A. S.Landis, L. M. Coop, H. A. Dixon, Frank Van Dyke, O. D. Johns, George Tipps, Don Gardner, Flavil Nichols, Hugh Fulford, Carmack Skelton, Kelby Smith, Van Stewart, Charles McDonald, Phillip A. Dunn, Billy Watson, Russell Cook, Howell Ferguson, Josh Cook, Adam Carlucci, David Powell, and Dalton Todd.
Our present Ministers are:
- Caleb Colley (Pulpit Minister)
- John McCadams (Missions Minister)
- Luke Janiec (Youth Minister)
In March 1989, the church moved to a new facility located at the corner of Highway 45 Bypass and Oil Well Road, with the goal of serving the needs of the rapidly growing North Jackson area. In the summer of 1996, we expanded with a new 900-seat auditorium.
With God's continued blessings, the brightest segment of our history is yet to come, and we hope that includes you.