It all started in 1819 when two devout followers of John Wesley, named Owen and Jacques, heard the call to preach in the districts outside Manchester. They had only vague ideas as to the exact field of their labours, but full of enthusiasm and faith they set out from Oldham Street Chapel and along Rochdale Road as far as Barnes Green. Arriving at the junction of two lanes, they decided to throw a walking stick, and the direction in which it pointed when it fell was to be regarded as the Divine Finger.
The stick pointed up Moston Lane and those bold disciples of John Wesley borrowed a stool from one of the Moston cottages and the Methodist flag was unfurled, from then on the history was not nearly so romantic and we have to be content with giving notable dates of the events that have brought us from that day to this.
| 1821 | Charity Sermons (2nd Anniversary) held in Hough Hall Barn. |
| 1822 | Shackliffe Green Sunday School started at Smith’s farm. |
| 1825 | Wesleyan Methodists built the first Sunday School at Streetfold. |
| 1835 | Warrenties withdrew from the Wesleyan Church. The Wesleyan Association was formed and took over the premises at Streetfold. |
| 1840 | The Wesleyan Association built a second Streetfold Sunday School . |
| 1857 | The Wesleyan Association and Wesleyan Reformers united and formed the United Methodist Free Church . |
| 1872 | The United Methodist Church, Gill Street was built . |
| 1875 | The United Methodist School, Gill Street, was built . |
| 1877 | The Wesleyans opened a preaching room in a cottage at the Moston Lane end of Winston Road . |
| 1879 | Wesleyan Anniversary services were held in a large tent pitched on the site of Moston Lane Primary School . |
| 1881 | Wesleyan School / Chapel opened. It was built at the corner of Whitman Street and Ashley Lane. |
| 1884 | The United Methodists re-opened the second Streetfold Sunday School as a Chapel / School. |
| 1895 | The Primative Methodists built a temporary Chapel on Lightbowne Road. |
| 1902 | The Primative Methodist Church was built on the site of the temporary Chapel on Lightbowne Road |
| 1903 | The Wesleyan Methodists opened Moston Wesleyan Church on Ashley Lane. |
| 1907 | United Methodist Free Church, Methodist New Connexion and Bible Christians united, forming United Methodist Church. |
| 1910 | United Methodist Church was built at Streetfold. |
| 1913 | Gill Street Church destroyed by fire. |
| 1914 | United Methodists built second Gill Street Church. |
| 1932 | Primative Methodist, United Methodist and Wesleyan Methodist Churches united to form the methodist Church. |
| 1952 | Methodist Church built the third Sunday School at Streetfold. |
| 1962 | Lightbowne Road Methodist Church closed 1st January. Streetfold Methodist Church closed 1st September. Gill Street Methodist Church closed 1st September. Ashley Lane Methodist Church closed 1st September. Moston Methodist Church took over the premises at Ashley Lane on 2nd September. |
| 1965 | Moston Methodist Church opens modernised premises on Moston Lane. |
These are only the landmarks in the history of the formation of the Moston Methodist Church. The story is not yet complete and, we suspect, never will be.
We are writing new chapters each day as we worship together.
We pray that learning from the experiences of our past history we will continue our task to extend the Kingdom of God here in Moston.
Some links to old photographs on the Manchester City Council, Local Archives website: