Church History

Methodism for blacks in Dayton had its beginning in the United Brethren Church. In 1860 blacks who were church members attended the United Brethren Church on what was then called court street. The city bought the property on which the church stood, promising to build the congregation a building on another site. This promise was never fulfilled.

In 1873 Reverend John Downs attempted to establish a Methodist Church in Dayton but was unsuccessful. Later, Reverend Albert Matthews built a Baptist mission on Hawthorn Street. This mission in 1880 was called "Little Jim" and its members interchanged with Zion Baptist church in having literary meetings.

The Reverend J. H. Payne bought the first building and lot and located the church on Hawthorn Street. The church at that time was called the Hawthorn Street Methodist Episcopal Church. In 1896 the Reverend London Swift, a Baptist minister, attended a political meeting in Springfield, Ohio and asked Mr. William McKinley, who was running for the office of President of the United States, if he would donate to a church if it were named in his honor. McKinley readily agreed and made substantial contributions to the small congregation. In 1896, the name was changed to the McKinley Methodist Church in honor of President McKinley. In 1968, after the merger of the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the name became the McKinley United Methodist Church.

In one hundred twenty-four years of existence, McKinley has benefited from the expertise and spiritual guidance of thirty-two ministers and their families and countless numbers of loyal lay persons who have left us a legacy of dedication, faith, commitment, sacrifice and the ability to succeed against all odds. We members of McKinley United Methodist Church must go forth with joy under the leadership of our present minister Rev. M. Merritt Worthen and continue to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. As we set our goal and fix our eyes toward heaven, let us finish the race that is set before us.

A Chronological List of Ministers of McKinley United Methodist Church

1880 Rev. Albert Matthews		1924-1929 Rev. Joseph Burton
1887-1889 Rev. J.H. Payne		1929-1931 Rev. Pettis Gorham
1889-1890 Rev. Marcus McCoomer		1931-1935 Rev. David Jordan
1891-1892 Rev. Scott Ward		1935-1938 Rev. W. H. McCallum
1893-1894 Rev. T.C. Carpenter		1938-1946 Rev. George Sherard
1895-1896 Rev. Marcus McCoomer		1946-1952 Rev. J. I. Dixon
1896-1900 Rev. Simon Turner		1952-1955 Rev. C.T.R. Nelson
1901-1903 Rev. Pettis Gorham		1955-1958 Rev. I. D. Dorsey
1903-1905 Rev. Charles Lewis		1958-1961 Rev. C. V. Haynes
1905 Rev. W. C. Stovall		1961-1966 Rev. Frank Arnold
1905-1907 Rev. C.E. Alexander		1966-1975 Rev. Robert Streaty
1907-1910 Rev. N.H. Talbott		1975-1986 Rev. Joseph Leon Aldridge
1910-1911 Rev. Zeigler		1986-1998 Rev. Dr. William J. Augman, Jr.
1911-1914 Rev. W. C. Statesman		1998-2002 Rev. Dr. Lois B. Fortson
1914-1919 Rev. Joseph Burton		2002-2004 Rev. Louis R. Jones
1920 Rev. W. H. Riley		2005-2007 Elder Roland J. Moore
1921-1924 Rev. John Wesley Chinn		2007-June 2010 Rev. Diane Turner-Sharazz
June 2010-present Rev. M. Merritt Worthen

More detailed information is available in the archives housed in the Church Library.