A Strong History
On a day appointed of God in 1898, a group of nine Christians, led by the Rev. Henry Hall, met in a frame house on Amen Street (now 13th Avenue South) and founded the forerunner of our current John Wesley United Methodist Church.
rom the inception of the church, “the people had a mind to work.” Seven pastors and seventeen years later, this congregation had purchased two lots, built a frame church building, named it “The Nashville City Mission”. However, the church membership remained small during those formative years. In the early 1900′s the church was renamed “Green’s Chapel.”
The following period, 1915-1941, was characterized by fluctuating membership with slow growth and development. This can be attributed, in part, to two world wars and the Great Depression.
Rev. Samuel Strayhorne’s eight-year pastorate was the most progressive and successful of this time period. A new brick building was erected in 1921 and dedicated as “The John Wesley Methodist Episcopal Church.” Church membership rose from 15 in 1915 to 76 in 1923.
Another wonderful stage of growth and development for John Wesley Church encompasses the years 1942 to 1967. Twelve pastors served the church during these years. It was during this time that the current infrastructure was established and improved, two new modern church buildings were erected. We relocated to the newer and current edifice built under the pastorate of Rev. Randolph. In 1999 Rev. Daniel M. Hayes, Sr., led the church to exceed 300 members. Under his leadership a new education wing and a multi-function fellowship hall was added.
We envision a bright future for John Wesley United Methodist Church. With God’s grace and mercy, faithful servant leaders and a praying congregation, we will be obedient to the vision, will and purpose God has ordained for us .
Our Senior Pastor/Teacher is the Reverend Daniel M. Hayes, Sr., a native Nashvillian with 30+ years of pastoral and conference leadership as a member of the Tennessee Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church.