The History of Mt. Vernon United Methodist Church
“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 1:3-6 (Today’s New International Version)
Mt. Vernon’s 138th Anniversary
2025 marks the 138th year in the life of Mt. Vernon UMC. Methodist circuit riders founded James City Chapel in 1791 on the site of today’s James City Chapel Cemetery in Norge, the cemetery of Mt. Vernon UMC. The Chapel was the mother church of Mt. Vernon. After nearly 100 years of service as a Methodist house of worship, the James City Chapel’s congregation decided to build a new church in Toano. The new railroad line from Richmond to Newport News would have a train depot in Toano, bringing prosperity and more potential members for the church. A portion of the James City Chapel was deconstructed and moved to Toano on a railcar to the depot at the bottom of Church Hill, hauled up the hill by a team of oxen, and reconstructed. Mt. Vernon Methodist Episcopal Church, South, was dedicated on September 26, 1887, and continues to serve its members and the community today as Mt. Vernon United Methodist Church 138 years later.
Carole Dishman, Church Historian, 9/26/2025
