The African Inland Mission (AIM), often referred to as “the American Mission,” was conceived by Peter Cameron Scott, a Scottish-American clergyman who had previously served at a mission in The Democratic Republic of the Congo. While in England recuperating from illness, he began planning the foundation of a mission network that would stretch from Africa’s southeast coast all the way to Lake Chad in the continent’s interior. After sharing his vision with friends from Philadelphia in 1895, the group formed the Philadelphia Missionary Council. In August of the same year, Scott and four others set off for Africa and within a year they had established four missions in Kenya. Soon they were joined by more missionaries from the United States and Canada.

In 1896 Scott died of blackwater fever, a complication of Malaria and the organization was taken over by Charles Hurlburt, President of the Pennsylvania Bible Institute, who moved to Kenya along with his entire family
and set up headquarters in Kijabe.

With American President Theodore Roosevelt’s help, AIM expanded into German East Africa [present day Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania and Mozambique] the Belgian Congo [Democratic Republic of the Congo], Uganda, French Equatorial Africa [present day Gabon, Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, and Chad], Sudan, and the islands of the Indian Ocean. AIM continues in operation today, with the stated goal of establishing "Christ centered Churches established among all African peoples."