African Methodist Episcopal Church

The African Methodist Episcopal Church, known as the AME Church, is the oldest independent Black Protestant denomination in the United States. Founded in 1816 in Philadelphia by Bishop Richard Allen, the AME Church was born from an act of profound dignity: Allen and other Black worshippers refused to accept segregated seating at a white Methodist church and walked out together. What began as a protest became a cornerstone institution of African American life. For more than two centuries, the AME Church has served as far more than a place of worship. Its congregations functioned as schools, community centers, safe havens, and organizing hubs. During the antebellum era, AME churches sheltered freedom seekers on the Underground Railroad. After the Civil War, AME ministers and missionaries fanned across the South to establish schools and provide education to millions of formerly enslaved people. During the civil rights era, AME congregations provided meeting space, moral leadership, and community strength to the movement. Today, the AME Church has approximately 2.5 million members across the United States and around the world, with congregations in Africa, the Caribbean, and Europe. Its Mother Bethel AME Church in Philadelphia — founded by Bishop Allen in 1794 — stands as a National Historic Landmark and the oldest piece of real estate continuously owned by African Americans in the United States. The AME Church's story is inseparable from the story of African American freedom, dignity, and resilience.