History
In the Beginning
Central United Methodist church began in 1901 when several people who resided in or near Lenoir City expressed a desire for a Methodist Episcopal church. They conferred with Rev. John Wesley Cardwell, who was the pastor of the Ebenezer charge of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and asked for his preaching services. Rev. Cardwell added the group to his charge as a “preaching place,” and preached for them once a month. At the following annual conference in 1902, the “preaching place” became a part of the Loudon Circuit served by Rev. W.S. Grant.