It was founded in 1881 by students of William S. Clark at the Sapporo Agricultural College.

[1][2] These students became known as the "Sapporo band" of Christians.

[3] Although Clark had returned to the United States by the time the church was founded, he supported it financially and corresponded with its members through letters.

[2] Members of the church include Uchimura Kanzō, who went on to found the non-church movement, and Nitobe Inazō, who became president of the Tokyo Women's Christian College, an under-secretary at the League of Nations, and was the author of Bushido: The Soul of Japan.

This article about a church building or other Christian place of worship in Japan is a stub.