An Oasis on 14th Avenue North
Clark Memorial United Methodist Church sits at 1014 14th Avenue North in Nashville's historic north side, a short walk from the campuses of Fisk University and Tennessee State University and not far from Meharry Medical College. The church describes itself as "An Oasis of Hope, Help, Healing and Hospitality," and its long ministry in this neighborhood, more than 160 years and counting, has earned it a place among the city's oldest African American congregations.
For generations, Clark has been more than a Sunday meeting place. Its members have taught in Nashville's schools, practiced medicine at Meharry, marched for civil rights, and shaped the cultural life of North Nashville. The history pages put it simply: Clark is "Still on the Journey."
Meet Pastor Toi King
Rev. Toi M. King has served as lead pastor since 2021. Her welcome note opens with a line from Psalm 133: "Behold how good and pleasant it is when brothers and sisters dwell in unity." She writes that Clark is "a church that believes in the power of God's word," "a community that loves Jesus, each other, and loves you," and a place "where everyone can worship God in their own way to express themselves."
Pastor Toi invites newcomers to "be a part of this worship experience to open hearts, open minds and open arms as we together create a better world." Her note closes with the Aaronic blessing from Numbers 6:24-26.
Sunday Worship at 10 AM, In Person and Online
Sunday worship at Clark Memorial is a hybrid service held every week at 10:00 AM. The livestream begins at 9:45 AM on Facebook Live, and a Zoom link is also posted so that anyone can join from home. The service is open to all.
First-time visitors who want to make the next step can fill out the New Member Registration form online. It gathers basic information and lets newcomers indicate which ministries interest them, including Adult Sunday School, Children's Church, Bible Studies, Small Groups, Usher Board and Greeters, Music, Prayer, Youth Group, Congregational Care, and Missions and Outreach.
A Heritage of Music and Voices
Music has been central to Clark Memorial since its earliest days. The current music staff keeps that tradition alive across several ensembles:
- Paula Y. Holmes, Director of Music, oversees the overall music ministry.
- Victor L. Davis directs the Full Ensemble.
- Louis K. Burnett leads the Men's Ensemble.
- Sandra Glenn-Burnett directs the Next-Gen Choir.
The Sanctuary Choir and Handbell Choir are also part of Clark's ongoing musical life, and recordings from both groups are preserved in the church archive. Over the decades, Clarkites have contributed to Nashville's music scene through performance, composition, and teaching in the city's public schools and HBCUs.
From 1865 to Today: Clark's Long Walk Through Nashville
Clark Memorial's story begins in 1865, when land once belonging to Andrew's Chapel on Franklin Street was purchased by the Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The building was used as a house of worship and as a school for Black youth. The school grew so quickly that by 1867 it had a name of its own: Central Tennessee College.
That school was renamed Walden University in 1900. Its medical department was organized in 1876 and became Meharry Medical College, the first medical school in the South for African American students, and an independent institution in 1915. Meharry later added a School of Dentistry.
Clark itself moved to its present location at 14th Avenue North and Phillips Street in 1945 and has continued to grow there as a worshipping community. The church's long pastoral record stretches from Rev. John Seay (1866) through more than thirty ministers, including Rev. W.C. Dobbins (1968-1983), Rev. Dr. Joe K. Shelton, Sr. (1983-1986), Rev. James R. King, Jr. (1986-1996), Rev. Edward E. Bufford (1998-2004), Rev. Warren G. Booker, Jr. (2004-2008), Rev. Harold L. Martin (2008-2012), Rev. Dr. Kennard Murray (2012-2015), Rev. Dr. Herbert Lester (2015-2021), and the current pastor, Rev. Toi King.
A Church That Helped Raise Nashville's HBCUs
Clark Memorial's reach into Nashville's Historically Black Colleges and Universities runs wide. Many faculty, alumni, and administrators of Meharry, Tennessee State, Fisk, and American Baptist College have been members of Clark over the years.
Meharry Medical College grew out of the Clark Chapel community school. Notable Clark-connected Meharry figures include Dr. Matthew Walker, Sr., Dr. George W. Hubbard, Dr. Charles J. Walker, Dr. Harold Jordan, Dr. Fred Fielder, Dr. Henry A. Moses, and Dr. E. Perry Crump.
Tennessee State University opened in 1912 as the Tennessee Agricultural & Industrial State Normal School. Clark-connected TSU figures include Dr. Tommie Morton-Young, Dr. Calvin O. Atchison, Sr., Dr. Hazo Carter, Sr. and Elizabeth Forbes Carter, Dr. Eddie T. Goins, Lina McCord, Samuel Whitmon, Leonard Morton, and Jordan D. "Chick" Chavis. Buildings on the TSU campus honor longtime Clark members Lois H. Daniel, Dr. Thomas E. Poag, Alger V. Boswell, Coach Ed Temple, and Coach "Big" John Merritt.
Fisk University and Clark were founded at almost the same time and became neighbors when Clark moved to 14th Avenue North. Clark-connected Fisk figures include Dr. Jessie Carney Smith, H.B. "Bus" Thompson, Rev. Dr. Karen Y. Collier, Pearl Allen Bryant, and Tennessee State Representative Justin Jones.
American Baptist College, which opened in 1924, has long drawn support from Clark. The school's roster of civil rights leaders, including Rev. C.T. Vivian, Congressman John Lewis, Dr. Bernard Lafayette, and Dr. Julius Scruggs, has intersected repeatedly with the church's life.
Civil Rights in the Educational Wing
Clark Memorial's role in Nashville's civil rights movement is documented in the church's archive and on its history pages.
In August 1958, the Women's Society of Christian Service hosted a forum on desegregating Nashville's public schools. White segregationists tried to disrupt the meeting with bomb threats, but those gathered refused to be intimidated.
Also in 1958, Rev. James Lawson conducted nonviolence training classes in the church's educational wing. Local college students who took part, including John Lewis, Diane Nash, Bernard Lafayette, Marion Barry, and Matthew Walker, Jr., went on to lead the sit-ins that helped desegregate Nashville's downtown lunch counters.
In September 1961, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., James Lawson, James Farmer, and other leaders held a meeting of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference at Clark ahead of Dr. King's address at the War Memorial Building.
These stories are preserved in the Clark Memorial Archive, alongside a photograph collection that documents the church's life from the late 1960s onward, copies of The Clark Clarion newsletter from March 1976 to July 1985, and oral histories gathered from longtime Clark members.
Small Groups for Every Season of Life
Alongside Sunday worship, Clark Memorial keeps a busy calendar of small groups and Bible studies. Several of them meet online, making it easy to join from anywhere.
Bread, Books, & Bible meets on Wednesdays at 6:30 PM on Zoom. It is a weekly Bible study open to anyone who joins with the meeting link.
The View is an adult Sunday school class that meets every Sunday morning from 8:15 to 9:00 AM via Zoom. The class uses The Wired Word, an interdenominational curriculum that connects current events to Scripture.
Rooted in Faith is a group for Generation Jones adults who stay connected by text each weekday and study the devotional "Jesus Is Calling" Monday through Friday.
Health and Healing is a discussion group that explores spiritual, physical, mental, and financial wellness through Biblical stories and contemporary religious writing.
The Prayer Support Group meets on a regular weekly schedule as a confidential place to share concerns, joys, and prayer requests, read together, and encourage one another.
Children's, Youth, and Young Adults
Children and youth are a regular part of life at Clark Memorial. The Children's and Youth Ministry is one of the church's core ministry areas, and Children's Church is offered alongside the adult worship service for younger worshippers.
For young adults, the Young Adult Ministry gathers those navigating early career, graduate school, and new family life. Tatayana Richardson serves as Ministry Associate and Campus Minister, working with students connected to the nearby HBCU campuses.
Mission, Outreach, and United Women in Faith
The Mission and Outreach ministry at Clark Memorial carries the church's life of service beyond its walls. United Women in Faith, the women's ministry of the United Methodist Church, is an active part of the congregation, and its predecessor, the Women's Society of Christian Service, was the group that hosted the 1958 desegregation forum in the face of bomb threats.
The Nurture and Membership Care ministry keeps watch over the congregation's pastoral life. It serves as the parent ministry for Archives and History, the Birthday Committee, Membership Orientation, Congregational Care, Good Samaritans, Support Groups, and the Library Committee.
The Wesley Foundation at Fisk
Just down the street from Clark Memorial, the Wesley Foundation at Fisk is the United Methodist campus ministry serving students at Fisk University. Clark Memorial walks alongside this ministry as a partner congregation, helping to support the spiritual life of college students right in the neighborhood.
Getting Connected at Clark
Anyone interested in joining a ministry or small group can email the church's office of discipleship at discipleshipwithclarkumc@gmail.com. The church office can be reached at adminoffice@clarkmemumc.org or 615-329-4464, and the mailing address is 1014 14th Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37208.
Giving is accepted by mail, by drop-off in a locked mailbox at the top of the steps to the Fellowship Hall, or online through the church's giving page.
Clark Memorial United Methodist Church is part of the Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference of the United Methodist Church, specifically the Red River District and the Urban Cohort. It describes itself as a community "dedicated to serving the people of North Nashville," guided by the teachings of Jesus Christ and committed to a love of God and neighbor that has shaped this congregation since 1865.