198 years ago a young Methodist preacher rode into an unruly town on the Mississippi River with a population of around 500 called Memphis TN. Reverend Thomas Davidson had a vision of starting a church from which other churches and even new denominations would grow. In February of 1826, Rev. Thomas and three others held the first worship service of what would become the first church in Memphis and would later be called Memphis First United Methodist Church. In 1832, 11 faithful members sought to buy land and build a place of worship so they could increase their ability to reach out to the people of Memphis.

Within a year, the church had been built upon the plot of land upon which First Church sits now and the membership had increased to 51 persons.

185 Years later, the people of First Church face a similar situation. In October of 2006, the historic sanctuary of Memphis First UMC caught fire and was totally destroyed. Along with the loss of the sanctuary, the adjacent offies and educational building known as the Pepper Building was also damaged to the point of needing to be completely rebuilt on the inside.

After the fire, church members met in a variety of spaces, including an auditorium at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The congregation began raising money to rebuild at the original site. With the gifts of the extraordinary generous people in the community as well as the proceeds from insurance, Memphis First was able to fully restore the Pepper Building and to begin worshipping there in 2009.

In 2018, work was complete on the new sanctuary and the congregation moved worship to this beautiful space. Today, several ministries serving the homeless use First Church's space to feed and shelter their clients. In May 2023, First United Methodist Church and Bluff City Church joined as one, creating Memphis First United Methodist Church. We invite you to become a part of our rich history and exciting future.