FCC History: 1892-1919

The First Christian Church of Corbin as a body of believers is 33 years older than the building we celebrated during Homecoming 2025. We are standing on the shoulders of those who came before us, and we want to honor the long history of this congregation.

The church was organized by evangelist John Wesley Masters, who planted quite a few churches across Kentucky. This happened in 1892, which was also the year that L&N expanded its railroad hub in Corbin. Corbin itself was incorporated as a town three years later. At that first organizational meeting on August 6, 1892, 27 founding members were present. Masters was named as the first FCC pastor, and an elder as well. Other elders named were W.P. Durham and D.T. Chesnut. Deacons assigned were J.W. Martin, L.M. Belew, and W.B. Sutton. Mr. Durham was also named clerk.

Then called the First Church of Christ, the congregation met at the chapel of the old Christian College, on what is named College Street for that very reason. The site is now home to St. John's Episcopal Church. In 1899, a janitor was oiling the floors of the building when his lantern fell and ignited the fresh oil. The building burned completely, and the college folded.

The FCC congregation then met at various community buildings until a donated lot on Ford Street allowed them to build a church. But there were constant problems in that location. First the cheaply-made brick crumbled, so a frame church was built instead. It was struck by lightning twice, and the building finally burned down. The congregation swapped the lot for a new location at the corner of Center Street and Christian Street in East Corbin, and the first brick church in Corbin was built in 1908. During this time, FCC had the largest congregation in town. In 1909, the church voted to get a $1500 loan from the Christian Missionary Society to cover outstanding construction costs. That site (a further history is here) is now the home of First Pentecostal Church.

Meanwhile, the FCC congregation kept growing, and soon needed a bigger church.

Pastors during this period were John W. Masters, T.E. Utterback, F.C. Button, Paph Julian, Robert Boatman, Jim Cole, T. M. Myers, R.E.L. Abbott, W. Henry Warren, and J. B Darnold.

Next: FCC History, chapter two.