History
Did you know that in some congregations people needed to pay to rent pews for their families to worship? You couldn’t sit in any spot other than the one you paid for. This issue was one of the reasons Westminster was founded. Believing pews should be free and people should be able to sit anywhere in the sanctuary, 63 members of the First Presbyterian Church of West Chester left that congregation and helped charter Westminster Presbyterian Church on May 26, 1892.
After meeting in several local buildings, a property was purchased in West Chester borough (Church & Barnard Streets). The groundbreaking for the original chapel was held on October 16, 1893. Westminster soon outgrew this first space, and a new sanctuary was added in 1900. For 100 years, the church ministered in downtown West Chester. With a rapidly expanding suburban population traveling to the church by car, limited building space and parking hampered further growth of the church.
The congregation, struggling with an aging building and limited space, received a generous donation of farm land from Mr. and Mrs. James K. Robinson and voted to move to a new location south of the borough. The congregation built a new facility with three buildings, and moved to the present location (W. Pleasant Grove Rd.) in December 1993. The pipe organ and the stained-glass windows in the narthex and west side of the sanctuary were brought from the old building. Like longstanding members, the organ and windows remind us of our great heritage, while new windows on the east side of the sanctuary and newer members remind us always to look to the future.
From 1994-2007 the congregation grew at a rapid pace, which only slowed when the economic downturn in 2008 diminished population growth in the county. A fourth building was added in 1999, completing the beautiful facility we have today. In over 130+ years, Westminster has only had eight head pastors: B. Canfield Jones, Alexander Esler, Charles R. Williamson, William Henry Dilts, Robert B. Boell, Robert D. Young, Donald D. Lincoln and Leah Hrachovec. The leadership team and members of the congregation celebrate the opportunities of our life together as we seek to minister in the Lord’s name, fulfilling our mission of”Knowing Christ, Making Christ Known”.
Read more about Westminster’s history and heritage with our 125th anniversary book, Celebrate “Knowing Christ, Making Christ Known” 1892-2017. Additional information is available in our Archives from our church historians.