Young People's Society of Christian Endeavour

The movement peaked during the last decade of the nineteenth century and then declined as denominational youth societies imitated and adapted the forms of Christian Endeavor.

[3] The first Christian Endeavor Society was formed on February 2, 1881, in Portland, Maine, under the direction of Francis E. Clark.

As an active member I promise to be true to all my duties, to be present at and to take some part, aside from singing, in every Christian Endeavor meeting, unless hindered by some reason which I can conscientiously give to my Lord and Master, Jesus Christ.

[5] Christian Endeavor began as a small group of youth that met at the house of their minister.

Drawing on ideas taken from other pastors, especially Presbyterian Theodore L. Cuyler from Brooklyn, Clark shaped the concept of "youth ministry" by asking young people in his Williston Congregational Church to sign a two-sentence pledge described in his book published in 1882, The Children and the Church, and the Young People's Society of Christian Endeavor, as a means of Bringing Them Together.

[7] The World's Christian Endeavor Union (WCEU) office is located in Ephrata in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA.

[8] As of 2022[update] the society unites 40 independent National Christian Endeavor Unions in 32 countries around the world.

In Heaven to Betsy, the fifth book of the Betsy-Tacy series for children by Maud Hart Lovelace set in 1910s Minnesota, Betsy's new friend Bonnie is the leader of the local Christian Endeavor society, where several characters attend meetings and parties during the course of the novel.