People and the Land

Churches of Franklin County

In some ways Franklin County could be described as a land of churches. More than 120 churches are to be found in the towns and along the country roads of the county. While overwhelmingly protestant--there are only two Roman Catholic Churches in the county--the local churches exhibit a diversity of practice and belief that cannot be reduced to charts and categories. This diversity in the churches is a token of an often unnoted richness of social and cultural life in the county. Franklin County is both more tolerant and more interesting because of its churches. Ranging from the austerely puritan architecture of the Lexie Church of Christ which is an almost pure nineteenth century country church to the cathedral-like All Saints Chapel on the campus of the University of the South, the range of architectural and creedal styles reflected in these churches is a county treasure. Where the outside observer might expect the typical southern hegemony of baptist-methodist protestantism, the actual pattern of Franklin County churches is surprisingly and refreshingly different from the stereotype. The tiny town of Cowan, essentially nestled in an Appalachian cove, has more than a dozen different denominations represented among its 1800 inhabitants. The spiritual climate of the county makes it a friendly place for Jehovah's Witnesses and for Mennonites, for Nazarenes and Congregational Methodists, for Primitive Baptists and Episcopalians, for storefront churches and mainline denominational churches. The diversity of the churches combined with a strong sense of hospitality creates a welcoming climate for newcomers seeking to find a religious home in the county.

Summary of Churches, by general groupings:

Denomination       Number of Churches

Adventist                   1
A.M.E.                      1
Baptist                     33
Catholic                    2
Church of Christ            20
Church of God               8
Cumberland Presbyterian     11
Episcopal                   9
Jehovah's Witness           1
Mennonite                   1
Methodist                   11
Nazarene                    8
Pentecostal/Apostolic       4
United Church of Christ     1
Non-denominational          6

This list reflects churches which maintain telephone or yellow page listings in the Franklin County phone book. A number of small, independent churches are scattered across the county which refuse to participate in demographic surveys or which neglect to acquire yellow page listings. The total number of county churches is probably close to 130.

The nearest Lutheran churches are located in Tullahoma. Mormon (Latter-Day Saints) churches are located in Jasper, Altamont, and Tullahoma.

Synagogues are to be found in Huntsville and Chattanooga.

Worship centers for persons of Buddhist, Moslem, and Hindu faiths can be found both in Huntsville and in Murfreesboro.

For additional information see the "Churches" section of People and the Land.

previous/next