Mount Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church

Mount Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in 1849. The African-American people of the Long Green, Glen Arm, and surrounding vicinity use to have a place called their "meeting house" where they would hold worship services, class meetings, and prayer meetings. They used to be led in these gatherings by local men, whom they reverenced as leaders and preachers. These were slave days, but the
masters were always willing for their slaves to attend the meeting place. They grew in numbers and soon wanted a spot of land, upon which they could build a "meeting house" to be called a church. They discussed this idea between themselves, and one day they decided to look for a place.

 

After asking several people to sell them an acre of land, they successfully found a man by the name of Mr. Nathaniel Peck and his wife, who owned a tract of the John Hawkins' land. Mr. and Mrs. Peck was willing to sell this group a piece of the land. The African-American people then elected men as trustees: Elisha Johnson, Grafton Quickley, Isaac Bowley, Henry Boulden, and William Cole to manage and act as trustees for them. These men signed a contract on the ninth day of January 1855, the Justice of the Peace of Baltimore County (Towson, Maryland).

 

 

The people of Mount Zion Church purchased the tract of land for a church and cemetery that they could call their own and worship without any harassment. Over the past 150 years, Mount Zion has grown from the strong faith of our Christian forefathers and foremothers to have the right to worship freely according to GOD's way, which has inspired our church to continue to grow spiritually and physically. With GOD as our divine leader, we continue to march onto Zion. This church is a historic landmark.