History

History of the Finch Hill Baptist Church

The Greenfield Free Will Baptist Church was organized on August 11, 1805 by the Reverend Epaphras Thompson of Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania at the house of Benjamin Bucklin in Clifford Township.  Twenty-eight men and women declared themselves established as Free Communion Baptists.

The church soon joined the General Meeting of Free Communion Baptists and sent Deacon Gideon Lewis to that meeting to be ordained as their first pastor.  He was duly ordained on September 10, 1805.  The first church met for worship in the homes of its members in Greenfield and was known as the Free Baptist Church of Christ in Greenfield.  On August 31, 1822, the church entered into the organization of the Gibson Quarterly Meeting of Free Will Baptists and was connected with that organization for many years.

It was under the Reverend Halloway H. Clancy that the church erected the present building at Finch Hill Corners on a lot purchased from James Keesler.  It was dedicated to the glory of God on the first Sunday in September 1870.

In 1930, the church became an independent Baptist Church and changed its name to Finch Hill Baptist Church.  The church began to affirm the doctrine of the security of the believer.

The church has been served by thirty-seven faithful ministers since its founding in 1805.  Most recently it has been served by Pastor James Reese (1957-1991), Pastor Glenn Borne (1991-1999), Pastor Daniel Henwood (1999-2011), Pastor Brian Nichols (2013-2016), Pastor Joseph LaCava (2017-2019), and Pastor John May (2019-2024).  We are thankful for our legacy of being a light set on a hill in Greenfield Township, faithfully proclaiming the gospel and building up believers in the faith.

View a more detailed history of our church here: History