British Methodist Episcopal

Owen Sound's British Methodist Episcopal Church has been serving the spiritual needs of its congregation for more than 150 years. Established in 1856, it's almost as old as the City itself.

A strong religious base was important to Black settlers, including escaped slaves, when they arrived in Canada. Those who settled in Owen Sound were no exception. The BME Church that they founded was a safe haven during the time of the Underground Railroad and after. Although they were free, Blacks still faced racism and discrimination and the church served as a means of support in an environment that was at times hostile.

How the church came to be

The church was initially served by a lay preacher, "Father" Thomas Henry Miller, the son of a slave who informally led the congregation 1851. He passed away on October 17, 1911, the same year the congregation moved for its fifth and final time.

The first church, the "Little Zion," was a log building on the east side of the Sydenham River near the current Farmers' Market. The church was torn down in the 1990s when the building was deemed unsafe.

A second church, a log shanty near 12th Street East between 1st and 2nd avenues, was built in 1856. The BME congregation moved to a third site, on the east hill at 7th Avenue East and 9th Street East, in 1862. By then, it had about 120 members. A fourth church was built at 779 2nd Avenue West.

The church moved to its current location at 245 11th Street West in February, 1911, purchasing it from the Westside Methodist Church for $1.

One of its trustees was "Dad" Henson, a cousin of Josiah Henson, Methodist preacher and founder of the Dawn Community and on whom Harriet Beecher Stowe based Uncle Tom of "Uncle Tom's Cabin." Family names of the congregation in 1911 included: Ady, Patterson, Johnson, Miller, Molock, Branston, Harrison, Courtney, Porter, Smith, Thompson, Scurvy, Smoot, Roy, Green, Jackson, O'Bryan, Hall, Henson and Borey. Some of those families still live in Owen Sound today.

Many church members worked on the Great Lakes ships that frequented the Owen Sound harbour. They offered "Sailors Suppers," which became a drawing card for the Owen Sound area. Early church members also founded Owen Sound's Emancipation Festival and Picnic, an annual tradition held every Civic Holiday weekend for more than 150 years.

The BME church currently holds services for a very small congregation. It was designated an Ontario Heritage site by Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander in 1987.