Summary

Francis Asbury (ăz'bərē, -bĕ-), (August 20, 1745 – March 31, 1816) was one of the first two bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church, now The United Methodist Church in the United States. As a young man in October 1771, English-born Francis Asbury traveled to America and, during his 45-year ministry in America, he devoted his life to ministry, traveling on horseback or by carriage thousands of miles to faithfully deliver sermons to those living on the frontier.