Cape Fear
Presbyterian Church
OUR STORY
About Us
We are a community of believers who are faithful to god and faithful to community. We share a passion for the Gospel, reformed theology, and a desire for Christ to be known in our community. We desire to connect with and care for the growing Harnett County Area.
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Cape Fear Presbyterian Church is in communion with Presbyterian Church U.S.A (PCUSA) and our faith can be found here: https://www.presbyterianmission.org/what-we-believe/
History of the church
The year was 1912 and the Girl Scouts of the USA was founded. The Titanic hit an iceberg and sank. Gas was 7 cents a gallon and milk was 9 cents a gallon. There was a small school located approximately 2.8 miles north of Lillington by the name of Cape Fear School. Some of the people in the school area expressed the desire to have a place to gather and worship.
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In January 1912, the Rev. J.K. Hall, who was preaching at other local churches in the area, began preaching one service per month on Sunday afternoon at the Cape Fear School house. The attendance was good and there was great encouragement to continue the work. In the summer they began having two monthly, Sunday afternoon services. A petition was drawn up for a Presbyterian church at the Cape Fear School house signed by 11 people pledging membership and support. The petition was presented to the fall meeting of Presbytery. A commission was appointed to organize the church and on December 1912, they proceeded to organize the church which was named Cape Fear as chosen by a vote of the congregation.
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In 1915, steps were taken to begin the erection of a church on a half -acre lot adjoining the school property. In September 1916, the church was occupied for the first time. Times were tough and it was difficult to even pay the preachers $10 per service. In a collections book that was found, it listed the names of the members. Some gave money, some gave produce, others gave wood. Although it was a struggle, they did not give up.
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Some years they participated in "God's Little Acre" by each family planting a field of cotton as a means of raising money for the benevolent causes. On Thanksgiving Day, this cotton was carried to the church and then transported to the gin and sold.
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Through hard work, faith, and determination, the church did survive. Many improvements and updates have been made to the building. It is often referred to as the "light beside the road."
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