Join us for Worship at 11 a.m. this Sunday

FROM CIRCUIT RIDER TO LANDMARK CATHEDRAL

The History of Epworth-Euclid UMC

Nearly 200 years ago a circuit rider led Cleveland’s first Methodist worship for a handful of the faithful in the Doan cabin in the middle of “a vast forest and desolate swamp.” From that humble beginning the Euclid Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church, our oldest predecessor congregation, was formed almost 190 years ago. As the city of Cleveland grew the congregation moved several times finally building at the corner of Euclid and Oakdale Avenues (East 93rd St.) in 1887.

 Shortly after the Euclid Avenue Church opened it was noted that a number of regular members had moved into the Wade Park area as a result of the city’s population growth. To satisfy their religious needs in an era prior to extensive mass transit or the automobile the Euclid Avenue church supported weekly prayer meetings in Wade Park that grew in a few short years to an autonomous congregation that built the Wade Park Methodist Church at Wade Park Ave. and East 86th St. in 1907.

 Another humble beginning in 1827 was a class of nine Methodists that grew into a large enough congregation to build its first building in 1841. The church continued to grow and moved several times to better serve the community. During these years the first meetings of what would became The Epworth League, a national movement in Methodism, were held under its roof. Finally in October, 1891 the cornerstone of the final sanctuary was laid. At the Quarterly Conference that year the church was officially named Epworth-Memorial Church to celebrate its importance as the birthplace of the Epworth League.

 In the early twentieth century the city of Cleveland was rapidly growing in all directions. Changing times called for new solutions. Both Euclid Avenue and Epworth-Memorial Churches were considering their alternatives and after considerable discussion decided to merge and together meet the challenges of a burgeoning city. Located in University Circle the building would be an integral part of Cleveland’s cultural hub. The new name was a combination of those of its predecessors, Epworth-Euclid Church. Ground was broken in February, 1926 and the building was formally dedicated on June 3, 1928. In 1961 the congregation of Wade Park Church voted to merge with Epworth-Euclid. For nearly eighty years it has been the spiritual home of generations of greater Clevelanders and a landmark in the community.