There’s a lot to celebrate in Mountain’s history.

We come from a strong heritage that has been characterized by growth, outreach and innovation. Started as a result of pioneering preachers who traveled by horseback from Kentucky, Mountain was formed by leaders who demonstrated a willingness to go, reach and endure in order to see God’s kingdom grow. 

Each generation has built upon the victories and struggles of the past in order to continue making disciples of Jesus Christ. We’ve been planting churches since the 1870’s and sending missionaries since the 1880’s. We’ve changed and experimented in order to keep fulfilling the mission. 

Now is the time for our generation to continue this heritage. There’s more to be done, much more. As we look at what has brought Mountain to this point, we know God has bigger plans for the future. Everything in the past has merely been a launching point for today as we continue to follow God faithfully forward. 

Timeline

1821 & 1823 – Samuel Rogers, one of the great pioneer leaders of the Restoration Movement, travels by horseback from Kentucky to speak to believers in Maryland. They meet in a log cabin known as Union Chapel on Old Joppa Road which could hold about 80 people.
August 1824 – James McVey, a Restoration preacher from Kentucky, arrives at Union Chapel for a three day meeting and organizes what would become Mountain Christian Church. 

July 1834 – After a revival preached by James Henshall and George Austin, the Christians at Union Chapel begin seeking their own house of worship and start meeting at a Friends’ schoolhouse, joining with another group of Christians organized that same year. 
August 21, 1847 – First house of worship is dedicated on a piece of property known as “The Mountain,” which is the present Mountain Road Campus location. (Did you know there used to be a “Mountain” post office nearby as well? It closed in the early 1900’s changing the address to Joppa.) 
1860’s – Civil War results in the loss of many members, but Mountain continues to minister throughout that time. 

1877 – Mountain begins church planting efforts in northern Harford County starting Avondale Christian Church. 
1878 – Instrumental music was first introduced in worship at Mountain. 

1882 – Albert Norton (then Senior Minister at Mountain) leaves to begin the first mission of the Christian Churches in India. He later began church work in Japan as well. 

1891 – Mountain moves to its second house of worship on the Mountain Road Campus (later remodeled and enlarged in 1941). 

1892 – Mountain sends a group to plant Fork Christian Church in Baltimore County. 
Early 1900’s – Dr. George W. Brown, a scholar and timothy of Mountain, works to translate the Old Testament into the Hindi language to reach the largest population group in India. 
1947 – Mountain works to plant First Christian Church of Havre de Grace. 

March 25, 1956 – Mountain dedicates and moves into its third house of worship on the Mountain Road Campus (which we now refer to as Walker Chapel). 

1957 – Mountain helps to plant Boulevard Christian Church in Essex. 

1964 – Kenny Messman ordained at Mountain and leaves to work in Rhodesia, Africa (now Zimbabwe). 

1968 – Mountain experiments with a new venue – Drive-in Services. The cars would park on the lot in the area in front of Cook Auditorium for the service. 

1975 – Mountain’s facility is expanded to include a new education wing which allows Mountain Christian School to begin in September of that year. 

September 12, 1993 – Mountain moves to its fourth house of worship on the Mountain Road Campus which we now call Cook Auditorium. 
December 7, 1997 – Ben Cachiaras begins as Senior Minister at Mountain. 
September 2004 – Mountain moves into the New Life Center, the fifth house of worship on the Mountain Road Campus. 
March 2006 – Mountain sends a group to start Community Christian Church in White Marsh including 4 staff and around 200 members. 
September 2008 – Mountain begins a second worship venue on campus with simultaneous services in two different locations on the Mountain Road Campus. 
March 2010 – Mountain launches its second campus in Bel Air at The John Carroll School. 

October 2013 – Mountain launches its third site in Edgewood and creates a community center called The EPICENTER to focus ministry in the areas of children and youth, recovery, life skills, and health and wellness. 

June 4, 2017 – Mountain Online officially launches.

Sept. 17, 2017 – Mountain launches a fourth campus in Abingdon.

Spring 2019 – Mountain Online re-launches.

2020 – Mountain partners with The EPICENTER to open a second location in Aberdeen.

Apr. 4, 2021 – Mountain launches a fifth campus in Aberdeen. 

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Hebrews 12:1