Born in Stratford, Connecticut, he received a limited education, taught school, and in 1799 went to Upper Canada in search of work as either a teacher or a land-surveyor. He was converted to Methodism in 1800 and worked for eight years as an itinerant preacher in the wilderness of the Canadian provinces, serving communities in the areas of Kingston, York, London, Niagara, and Montreal. Of particular note is his responsibility for organizing the first camp meeting in Upper Canada in the fall of 1805. That same year, he married Canadian Mary Bolton and, after a brief stint in Lower Canada, was transferred back to the United States in 1808, first in Albany and then New York in 1810. In 1812, Bangs was made the Presiding Elder of the Lower Canada District, also riding the Montreal Circuit. Bangs was esteemed within the church, and could have requested and received a much more pleasant assignment. However, with war brewing between Britain and America, few riders would volunteer for assignment to Canada, and Bishop Asbury would not assign non-volunteers. Bangs volunteered to be assigned to Canada, as there was a desperate need for volunteers. The war prevented Bangs from reaching his assignment, however, and Bangs instead was made Presiding Elder of the Croton Circuit in Delaware, while Thomas Burch went to the Montreal Circuit instead. In subsequent years, he took a prominent part in the councils of the church.