Foundations in Lancaster
1791 - Lancaster's oldest Methodist Church, Boehm's Chapel built at Willow Street, PA.

1803 - Rev. Henry Boehm preached a sermon from a butcher's block in the Lancaster market. He wrote that Lancaster was "hard soil for Methodism." He was assaulted by members of the crowd.

1807 - The first permanent preaching place for Methodism founded in the Borough of Lancaster. Boehm was appointed to try to gain a stronghold for Methodism in Lancaster because he understood the predominant language of the area, German.

At the request of Bishop Asbury and the Philadelphia Conference, Boehm had the Methodist Discipline translated into German. 1500 copies were printed in Lancaster. When Boehm came to Lancaster to proof the copy sheets, a downpour of rain prevented his returning home. He stayed at a public house where he often stopped. In his "Remembrances", Boehm wrote about a large number of Lutherans gathered to draw a lottery. The proceeds were to be used finish a church steeple at what is now Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church. Due to the noise and his disinterest, Boehm went for a walk.

He ended up meeting a woman who had been a member of the Methodist Church in Germantown. She told the Rev. Boehm that a man named Philip Benedict and his wife were seeking the Lord, based upon an experience at a camp meeting. Boehm went to their house on North Duke Street (between Orange and Chestnut Sts.) and prayed with them. This further increased their desire for Methodist preaching in Lancaster. Boehm agreed to preach in their home and it became a permanent preaching place for a period of two years.

The initial "church" was a class of six members including Philip Benedict and his wife. All the beds had to be removed each time they met, but the small group counted it all joy that they were able to meet in the second floor of the dwelling, in the "Upper Room."