Churches of Ohio

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Religion in Ohio

Religion has always been important to people of Ohio. Beginning with the native inhabitant’s religious activities that are evident by the earthworks that they left behind. The Moravian missionaries are thought to be among the first whites that sought to bring Christianity to the Delaware Indians.

Pioneers that had suffered hardships of the frontier life went to church which provided them with a stabilizing foundation. Settlers were fired with religious zeal as they moved into the Ohio area and they quickly established churches.

From the late eighteenth century to the early nineteenth century, Ohio’s religious community boomed. Ohio became home to the Shakers, Baptists, Presbyterians, Methodists, Campbellites, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and eventually included every major Christian faith. During the twentieth century, numerous non-Christian denominations were established in the state making Ohio a home to many different religious beliefs.

Denominational histories for groups such as the Church of the Brethren, Evangelical, LDS (1830 to 1838), Lutheran, Mennonite, Methodist, Moravian, Presbyterian, and Roman Catholic are listed in the Locality Search of the Family History Library Catalog under OHIO - CHURCH HISTORY and OHIO, [COUNTY], [TOWN] - CHURCH HISTORY.

Ohio's Church History

Advent Christian

• Advent Christian was organized by the Rev. Horace L. Hastings and the Rev.Miles Grant.

Seventh-day Adventist

• Originally called the Millerites after their founder William Miller, the name was later changed to Seventh-day Adventist in 1848.

Amish and Mennonites

• In the 1700's Ohio, there were several orders of the Amish faith found in Ohio. They are the Old Order, New Order, Swartzentruber, Beachy, Andy Weaver, and the conservative Mennonites and the Amish Mennonites. Most of the orders hold church services in their homes. The Mennonites usually have service in church buildings. In the 1700's between 50 and 100 Amish families arrived in America, settling mostly in Pennsylvania. Many others followed in the 19th century. Over the years, various orders of Amish spread into Ohio.

Assemblies of God

• In 1905 T. K. Leonard, a pastor in Findlay, received the Pentecostal message and the experience, and became a pioneer for the movement in Ohio.

Baptist

• "In January of 1790 in a block house near what is now Cincinnati, nine earnest men and women organized this church. The land was given by one Major Sites and he united with the church the next day after the gift.The Rev. John Gano was the first pastor to be followed later by the Rev. John Smith.The church was called the Columbia Church."

Campbellites

• Campbellites, or Disciples of Christ, founded in the 1820s by Thomas and Alexander Campbell.
• History of the Campbellites

Disciples of Christ

• Also known as the Campbellites

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

• During the autumn of 1830, four LDS missionaries introduced the restored gospel to the communities of northeastern Ohio as they made their way to preach to the Indians west of Missouri. The Elders were Parley P. Pratt, Ziba Peterson, Oliver Cowdery and Peter Whitmer, they called upon Sidney Rigdon, pastor of a congregation of the Disciples of Christ (Campbelliltes) at Kirtland, Ohio. Sidney Rigdon, along with a part of his congregation became converted and thus started the beginning of the LDS Church's episode in Ohio's early history.

Universalist

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