Methodist Episcopal Church was organized. While itinerating in Liberia, Bishop Levi Scott ordained the first African deacons and elders in 1853. In 1856, the General Conference created a new position, the missionary bishop, to oversee the foreign mission fields. The Liberian Conference elected Francis Burns to be its missionary bishop, and he was consecrated in 1858, becoming the Methodist Episcopal Church's first African American bishop. As a missionary bishop, Burns was not considered a general superintendent of the church, and his episcopal authority was limited to his assigned field. Domestically, there were efforts among Native American tribes, such as the Wyandotte of Ohio;
St. Peter's Episcopal Church (Norfolk, Virginia) Peter's Episcopal Church operated at this location until 1959, when it was transferred to the African-American trustees of Garretts Independent Community Church. In 1967, St. Peter's was transferred to the trustees of what come to be known as Saint James Holiness Church of Christ Disciples. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2010. St. Peter's Episcopal Church (Norfolk, Virginia) St. Peter's Episcopal Church, now known as The New Saint James Holiness Church of Christ Disciples, is a historic Episcopal church in Norfolk, Virginia, United States. It is a frame, gable-roofed building with two contiguous sections: 1)