Richard Allen was born enslaved. He grew up on a Pennsylvania farm. With help, he was able to buy his freedom when he was 25 years old. He soon moved to Philadelphia. There he became the first free black Methodist Episcopal minister in the United States. Before this time, the Methodist church did not allow blacks to worship on their own. Whites always watched over them when they met in church. Allen worked to convince other blacks to form their own worship group. In 1787, he organized the first independent African American organization. They named the group the Free African Society. They worked to end slavery and to help others in need.

In a church service in 1787, whites asked Absalom Jones to sit in the back of the church. Allen decided to do something. In 1794, he and Jones started a new church. It was called the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Their new church welcomed everyone.