Mother Bethel AME Church
419 S. 6th Street

Mother Bethel is the first African Methodist Episcopal Church in America and one of the oldest institutions established by Blacks in the Country. Mother Bethel traces its roots back to the Free African Society, a mutual aid society, which Richard Allen founded in 1787. Purchased in 1791, this property has been the site of four buildings erected by the congregation for worship and service. In addition to being a blacksmith shop, at one time Mother Bethel was also a station on the Underground Railroad before the Civil War.