Guide to the Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church (Philadelphia, Pa.) Records

A plot of land was purchased by Richard Allen in 1791, located on the corner of 6th (Sixth) and Lombard streets (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), which would become the genesis of Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church (MBAMEC). This land is the oldest piece continuously owned by African Americans since the first structure was erected in 1794. The church was formed through determination, sweat, and tears.

The church traces its roots to the Free African Society which was founded in 1787. The purpose of the Society was a mutual aid society. The funds contributed to the treasury were used to help church members in times of illness or other personal needs.

When Richard Allen, Absalom Jones, and other African American congregants were insulted by trustees of St. George's Methodist Episcopal Church during a morning prayer, in protest the group left the church. Although The Free African Society was not organized nor functioned as a church, it nevertheless served to provide a forum for African Americans to meet as a religious body. Allen, a former slave and Methodist preacher, felt that the most acceptable way of delivering the gospel to the people of color was to follow the Methodist doctrine. He, therefore, used his own money to purchase the land on the corner of 6th (Sixth) and Lombard.

While funds were being raised to build a permanent church, Allen purchased a blacksmith shop and had it hauled by a team of his own horses to 6th (Sixth) and Lombard streets. Bishop Francis Asbury, a bishop in the Methodist Episcopal Church, presided over the church's dedication in 1794. It was suggested that the name of the church be called “Bethel” meaning “the house of the Lord.” The membership increased and the blacksmith shop was dismantled. It was replaced by a roughcast structure which was erected in 1805. It was in this structure that some notable events occurred. First, in 1816 representatives from Black Methodists congregations came from Baltimore, Maryland, Wilmington, Delaware, Salem, New Jersey, and Attleboro, Pennsylvania (now known as Langhorne, Pennsylvania). The outcome of the meeting was that the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) denomination was formerly established. At this meeting, Richard Allen was elected as the first bishop of the AME Church. Second, in 1819, Jarena Lee became the first female to preach at Bethel Church. Allen was so impressed by her sermon that he officially gave her authorization to preach in the AME Church. Third, Allen died in 1831 and was buried at Bethel Church.

Again to accommodate membership growth, a third structure made of bricks and stone was known as the "red brick church." It was completed in 1841. This church was remodeled in 1870 and used for forty-eight (48) years.

The fourth and current structure was dedicated in 1889, by bishops Henry McNeil Turner and Daniel A. Payne. A number of ministers and visitors were in attendance. Mother Bethel AME Church has had 53 Pastors. In October 2024, Reverend Carolyn Cavaness was appointed the 53rd (fifty-third) and first woman pastor of the church.

Mother Bethel AME Church has hosted a number of prominent citizens and abolitionists pleading for justice and freedom and denouncing slavery, such as Lucretia Mott, Frederick Douglass, William Still, W. E. B. Du Bois, Paul Robeson, Desmond Tutu, Martin Luther King, and Rosa Parks.

Of special interest are the church’s stained-glass windows, in the sanctuary, which were erected in 1889. They depict Biblical references on one side of the building. The other sides of the building depict other recognizable symbols. The basement includes the tomb of Richard Allen which includes the remains of Richard Allen, Sarah Allen, and Morris Brown, the 2nd (second) elected bishop of the AME Church. The Richard Allen Museum, also located in the basement, is divided into three rooms. Before entering the three areas that house historical artifacts is a mural that depicts the history of the church. The first room contains photographs and a headstone from the Bethel Burying Ground, Sarah Allen’s rent book, muskets used during the War of 1812, and Richard Allen's Bible. The second room includes artifacts once owned by Richard Allen, a wooden pulpit, and several pews from the blacksmith shop. There are also pictures of the four churches. The third room includes a ballot box in which marbles were used to cast votes, a group photograph of the bishops' wives, and an image of Fannie Coppin, who was the first president of the Institute for Colored Youth (now known as Cheyney State College), and Jarene Lee, the first woman to preach at Mother Bethel among other women.

The plot of land at 6th (Sixth) and Lombard streets is the oldest parcel in the country continuously owned by African Americans since 1791. The church was designated as a National Shrine by the Department of the Interior of the United States Government in 1965. The church fulfilled and continues to provide the following needs for the African American community: religion, education, and a place to socialize. The AME Church has certainly mushroomed and is now on five continents and in forty countries.

--by Margaret Jerrido, Archivist, Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church