200 Years of First Presbyterian Church Columbus, Indiana: Honoring Our Past - Building Our Legacy - Hardcoverby Paul J. Hoffman (Author), Katharine Smith (Editor), Rachel McCarver (Cover Design by) First Presbyterian Church of Columbus, Indiana, has fashioned a long and rich history since it was chartered on July 3, 1824, by circuit rider John M. Dickey, with 17 members in attendance. Its first elder was a wounded Revolutionary War veteran. The Rev. Ninian S. Dickey, son of John M. Dickey, and the church's minister from 1853 1870, was a close friend of