Francis Makemie
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Francis Makemie (1658 – 1708) is considered to be the founder of Presbyterianism in United States of America.
Born in County Donegal, Ireland, he became a clergyman and was ordained by the Presbytery of Laggan in Ireland in 1682. At the call of Colonel William Stevens, he was sent as a missionary to America arriving in Maryland in 1683. In 1684, Makemie founded the first Presbyterian community in the Town of Snow Hill. The Makemie Memorial Presbyterian Church in Snow Hill, rests on the site of the original communities worship area. Makemie also built a church in Rehobeth, Maryland in Somerset County which still stands today as the oldest Presbyterian Church in America. He married Naomi Anderson, the daughter of a successful businessman and landowner. Francis and Naomi had two daughters, Anne and Elizabeth. In 1706, he was instrumental in the founding of the first Presbytery in America. Makemie eventually went to the Eastern Shore of Virginia and founded a community there. In 1707, Makemie was arrested by Lord Cornbury, the Governor of New York for preaching without a license. He was acquitted of the charges, and this is considered to be a landmark case in favor of religious freedom in America. Makemie died on the Eastern Shore of Virginia in 1708.
