Richard Allen, (1760-1831), was born in Philadelphia. The son of a slave, Allen was freed after his master was converted to Methodism. He was ordained a minister in 1784 at the first conference of the Methodist church in the U.S. During the next two years he was an itinerant preacher. While preaching at Saint George's Church in Philadelphia in 1786, an incident of racial prejudice occurred, which is believed to have started him working for the establishment of an independent Methodist church for black members. This separate church was formed in 1799. In 1816 the African Methodist Episcopal Church was formed, uniting congregations of blacks in New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland. Allen was appointed its first bishop, a post he held until his death.

Mother Bethel A.M.E. Church, the oldest church in African Methodism, was founded by Richard Allen in 1787 at 6th Street below Pine Street, in Philadelphia, PA. In 1794, as a result of mistreatment on the part of officers of Old St. George's Methodist Church, the first church was built and dedicated by Bishop Francis Asbury.

The present building, constructed in 1890, is the fourth on the same site, which represents the oldest continuous plot of real estate owned by Blacks in America. In 1965, under the pastorate of Dr. Charles E. Stewart, the U. S. Dept. of the Interior, designated Mother Bethel a National Historic Shrine. In 1974, under the pastorate of Rev. Joseph L. Joiner, Mother Bethel was designated a Historic Landmark by the same Department.