Our history
Since October 26, 1898
St. Andrew's was founded by the Rev. Terry Spencer Jackson — remembered as "the Pastor of Nashville" — whose name our street still bears. What began as one man's vision of a church for its neighborhood has become more than a century of worship, service, and steady presence in North Nashville.
Timeline of St. Andrew's history
1898
A congregation is founded
On October 26, 1898, the Rev. Terry Spencer Jackson organizes St. Andrew's in North Nashville. He will pastor the church until his death in 1941 — feeding children from his own door and never turning a neighbor away. A Presbyterian tribute remembers him as “the Pastor of Nashville.”
1942
Rev. J. Louis Logan
After the Rev. G. D. Hinkson serves as supply pastor following Rev. Jackson's death, the Rev. J. Louis Logan is installed as pastor.
1946
A sister church is planted
Under Rev. Logan's leadership and the auspices of Nashville Presbytery, John Calvin Presbyterian Church is founded — a sister congregation that will remain part of the St. Andrew's story for decades.
1951
Rev. William A. Alexander, Sr.
Rev. Alexander is installed as pastor and serves until his retirement in 1991. Under his tenure the congregation grows significantly, and its vision widens from a local ministry to a global one.
1952–1955
Building the present home
Construction of the present St. Andrew's facilities begins in 1952 and is completed in 1955 — the brick sanctuary that still anchors the corner of T. S. Jackson Avenue.
1996
Rev. Warner R. Durnell
After a season of supply preachers from many denominations, the Rev. Warner R. Durnell — designated pastor since 1993 — is installed as pastor, and the congregation enters a season of renewed involvement in its life and ministries.
2001
Two churches, one family
On July 28, 2001, John Calvin Presbyterian and St. Andrew's merge into one congregation. That August, the Rev. Dr. N. Horace Mann, Jr. becomes Parish Associate and Leonard E. Jordan — born and raised at St. Andrew's — becomes Lay Pastor.
Today
A historic church with a heart for today
The Rev. Leonard E. Jordan now pastors the congregation that raised him — a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and Louisville Presbyterian Seminary, and a past Moderator of the Presbytery of Middle Tennessee. More than 125 years on, St. Andrew's remains a small, warm, intergenerational church loving its Nashville neighbors.