Hereford Mennonite Church (Alliance of Mennonite Evangelical Churches), located at Bally, Berks County, Pennsylvania, named for the township in which it is located, dates back before 1725. Originally the area was within the Manatawny, then Colebrookdale, then Hereford, now the borough of Bally in Washington Township. The first ministers of the "Manatant" congregation were Jacob Bechtel and David Longenecker. The first resident ministers (1728) were George Bechtel and Peter Noll. After the division of 1847 there were two congregations, the smaller group, now known as Bally Mennonite, adhering to the Franconia Conference, the other incorporated since 1893 as Hereford Mennonite Church, a member of the Eastern District Conference. In 1955 the membership was 282, and the pastor was Henry G. Grimm.

In 2001, at the time of the creation of Mennonite Church USA from the merger of the Mennonite Church and the General Conference Mennonite Church, Hereford withdrew from the Eastern District to become part of the new Alliance of Mennonite Evangelical Churches.

Additional Information

Address: 2600 Old Route 100, Bally, Pennsylvania

Phone: 610-845-2429

Denominational Affiliation:

Alliance of Mennonite Evangelical Congregations

Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Scottdale, Pennsylvania, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 2, p. 709. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.

©1996-2009 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.

MLA style: Johnson, Elmer E. S. and Sam Steiner. "Hereford Mennonite Church (Bally, Pennsylvania, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 2008. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 21 November 2009 <http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/hereford_mennonite_church_bally_pennsylvania_usa>

APA style: Johnson, Elmer E. S. and Sam Steiner. (2008). "Hereford Mennonite Church (Bally, Pennsylvania, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 21 November 2009 <http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/hereford_mennonite_church_bally_pennsylvania_usa>