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Browse dozens of topics from a major national survey of religious congregations. See how the responses vary by the size, religious family and region of the congregation.
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View maps of the United States and individual states for hundreds of variables, including congregational membership, census data, crime statistics and many others.
This study was an effort to gather the statistics of churches and church membership throughout the United States for 1952. The data presented here are county-level data based on the cooperation of 114 religious denominations in the continental United States.
Self-report forms were completed by all participating religious bodies. Every denomination listed in the Yearbook of American Churches was originally approached by The National Council of Churches, bureau of research and survey. Of the 251 religious bodies listed in the Yearbook, 114 chose to participate in the enumeration.
Principal Investigators
National Council of Churches
Related Publications
(1956) Churches and Church Membership in the Unites States: An Enumeration and Analysis by Counties, States and Regions. National Council of Churches: New York
Special thanks to the Church Growth Division at the Church of the Nazarene for providing data entry which made archival of this denominational data possible.
Notes
The following is a list of participating denominations in the 1952 enumeration. If relevant, the denominational code and abbreviation (used in the 1980 and 1990 church membership studies) is included for those denominations that still exist. Denominations are categorized according to size and ordered the same way they appear in the 1956 publication (cited above).
Over 100,000 Members: Seventh-day Adventists--413--S.D.A. Assemblies of God--053--ASSEMB OF GOD American Baptist Convention--019--AMER BAPT USA Southern Baptist Convention--419--SO BAPT CONV Church of the Brethren--157--CH OF BRETHREN Church of God (Cleveland--127--CH GOD (CLEVE) Church of God (Anderson--123--CH GOD (ANDER) Church of God in Christ--143--CG IN CR(MENN) Church of the Nazarene--165--CH OF NAZARENE Congregational Christian Churches--175--CONGR CHR CHS Disciples of Christ International Convention--093--CHR CH (DISC) Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church of America--049--ARMEN AP CH AM Greek Archdiocese of North and South America--246--GREEK ORTHODOX Evangelical and Reformed Church Evangelical United Brethren Church Jewish Congregations--496--JEWISH EST Church of Jesus Christ Latter-day Saints--151--L-D SAINTS Reorganized Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints American Lutheran Church Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church Evangelical Lutheran Church Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod--283--LUTH--MO SYNOD Evangelical Lutheran Joint Synod of Wisconsin & Other States United Lutheran Church in America The Methodist Church--449--UN METHODIST Presbyterian Church in the U.S. Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. United Presbyterian Church of North America Protestant Episcopal Church Christian Reformed Church--105--CHRISTIAN REF Reformed Church in America--371--REF CH IN AM Roman Catholic Church--081--CATHOLIC Under 100,000 Members: Advent Christian Church--001--ADVENT CHR CH Life and Advent Union Amana Church Society--015--AMANA CH SOC Baha'i Faith Baptist General Conference of America--057--BAPT GEN CONF Christian Unity Baptist Association North American Baptist General Conference--313--N AM BAPT CONF Seventh Day Baptist General Conference--415--S-D BAPTIST GC United Baptists--436--UNITED BAPT Bible Protestant Church Brethren Church (Ashland Ohio) Brethren Church (Progressive) Church of God (New Dunkards) Plymouth Brethren--353--CHR BRETHREN Brethren in Christ--075--BRETHREN IN CR Church of Christ (Holiness) U.S.A. General Convention of the New Jerusalem in the U.S.A. General Church of the New Jerusalem--233--GEN CH NEW JER Divine Science Church American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Church Evangelical Congregational Church--199--EVAN CONGR CH Evangelical Free Church of America--203--EVAN FREE CH Evangelical Mission Covenant Church of America Apostolic Christian Church of America--040--AP CHR CH-AMER Church of God Missionary Bands of the World Missionary Church Association--291--MISSIONARY CH Religious Society of Friends (Conservative) Religious Society of Friends (General Conference) Religious Society of Friends (Five Yrs. Mtg.) Religious Society of Friends (Philadelphia and Vicinity) Central Yearly Meeting of Friends Oregon Yearly Meeting of Friends Church Unaffiliated Conservative Amish Mennonite Church International Church of the Foursquare Gospel The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonites)--149--CH OF JC (BIC) Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerites) United Evangelical Lutheran Church The Slovak Evangelical Lutheran Church Negro Missions--497--BLACK BAPT EST Church of the Lutheran Brethren of America--163--CH OF LUTH BR American Evangelical Lutheran Church Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (Eilsen Synod) Finnish Apostolic Lutheran Church of America Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church (Suomi Synod) Conference of the Evangelical Mennonite Church Conservative Mennonite Conference Hutterian Brethren--257--HUTTERIAN BR Mennonite Brethren Church of North America Mennonite Church--285--MENNONITE CH Old Order Amish Mennonite Church Old Order (Wisler) Mennonite Church Reformed Mennonite Church Stauffer Mennonite Church United Missionary Church Free Methodist Church of North America--221--FREE METHODIST Holiness Methodist Church Lumber River Annual Conference of the Holiness Methodist Church Primitive Methodist Church U.S.A. Pacific Yearly Meeting of Friends Reformed Zion Union Apostolic Church Wesleyan Methodist Church of America Bohemian and Moravian Brethren Moravian Church in America (Unitas Fratrum) Old Catholic Church in America Open Bible Standard Churches--329--OPEN BIBLE STD Pentecostal Church of God of America--339--PENT CH OF GOD The Pentecostal Holiness Church--349--PENT HOLINESS Pilgrim Holiness Church Associate Presbyterian Church of North America Cumberland Presbyterian Church--185--CUMBER PRESB Reformed Episcopal Church--375--REF EPISCOPAL Social Brethren--417--SOCIAL BRETH National Spiritualist Assn. of Churches Unitarian Church United Brethren in Christ--438--UN BRETH IN CR United Christian Church Universalist Church of America Vedanta Society Volunteers of America Church of God of Prophecy--145--CH GOD PROPHCY