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History

Ask The UMC: History of The United Methodist Church. Ask The UMC is a service of United Methodist Communications. Photo by Kathleen Barry, United Methodist Communications.

The United Methodist Church was created over 50 years ago when The Evangelical United Brethren Church and The Methodist Church united to form a new denomination. 

But the early beginnings of Methodism date back to 1736 when John and Charles Wesley came to the New World to spread the movement they began as students in England.

Learn more about the roots of our denomination and the developments that led to the church of today.

The Old Rectory in Epworth, England was built in 1709 following the "Great Fire" and was the home of John and Charles Wesley along with their parents and siblings. Photo by Kathleen Barry, United Methodist Communications.
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Ask The UMC-FAQs

Where is John Wesley's birthplace?

John Wesley was born in a small town in northeast England. His family's home still stands there.

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Bishop Francis Burns, missionary bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Liberia, 1858-1863. Photo courtesy of the Liberia Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church.
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Ask The UMC-FAQs

When was the first African-American bishop elected?

The first African-American bishop served in Liberia as a missionary bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

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Early Methodism

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