Church History
This part of the church records is to deal with historical data either directly or indirectly related to our congregation. It is a record of the building of the Lutheran Zion, and especially a record of the endeavors of St. John’s Lutheran Church. May the influence of St. John’s grow and abound to the glory of our God and the salvation of many immortal souls.
The North Platte Valley was served by pastors of the Missouri Synod even before Scottsbluff was on the map. These men were indeed pioneer heralds of Christ’s Evangel. They crossed the hills and rode the desert plains in the old-fashioned buck board; they made long journeys by rail,, in order to preach the Gospel of Christ. The principal headquarters of our church in the last decades of the 19th century was in Alliance and Hemminford. At the beginning of the 20th century the Burlington R. R. built a branch through what has been called the “Nile of America.” This was also the beginning of the North Platte Valley’s real development. Among the pioneers, who had a part in this development, were the Lutherans who did not forget their church. These people were served by the Missouri Synod. The first resident pastor in the valley was Pastor H. J. Eggold. He was called in the spring of the year 1909 to take charge of the mission work among the German Russians who had come to this section in large numbers after the coming of irrigation and the beginning cultivation of sugar beets. He first made Mitchell his headquarters, but later moved to Scottsbluff, From here Pastor Eggold served other preaching stations under his care. The first church of our synod was built by St. James of Scottsbluff in the year 1911. In the following year A, H. Guetter was called to Gering. He also served other places. Among these places served by Pastor Egglod and Guetter was St. John’s of Scottsbluff.
Rev. E. Eckhardt filled the vacancy. He served the congregation every Sunday from Gering. Candidate W. Stoeffelworth from St. Louis accepted the call to St. John’s and was installed by Rev. E, Eckhardt, September 3, 1922. During this year the Walter League joined the international organization. First payment on church debt was made in 1923. Towards the end of this year the Mission Board extended a call to Rev. W. Stoeffelworth (West Omaha) which he accepted and preached his farewell sermon January 6, 1924.
Rev. E. Eckhardt filled the vacancy from Gering, During April the Mission Board and St. John’s congregation sent a call to Rev. E. Eckhardt, Gering, Ne. He accepted the call, moved to Scottsbluff and from here served Gering and Harrisburg, besides teaching the parochial school of 57 pupils at Gering. He was installed Jubilate 1924 by Rev. M. Dreyer of Mitchell, Ne.
Several months following he began a church in Bayard,Ne. On the 22ne of September Pastor Eckhardt received a call from Immanuel Lutheran congregation six miles east of Hooper,Ne. Although the congregation unanimously expressed the wish that the pastor would stay, yet the pastor thought it his duty to accept the call. The voters finally gave him a peaceful dismissal. Pastor Eckhardt held his farewell address the 30th of October, 1927. During his stay the congregation gained eleven voting members, the number of souls more than doubled itself.
St. John’s congregation was started under the leadership of Pastor Eggold. His other congregation, St. James, had built its church in a part of the city where the people could be best served. Later it became evident that it would be to the benefit of the future growth and development of our church to conduct services further up-town. Several families which had formerly been connected with Missouri congregations had moved to the community.
The heads of these families, Messers, Genz, Goos and George Bender
Under the leadership of Pastor Eggold organized St. John’s. This organization was effected in October of the year 1916. Services were first held in the afternoon. In the beginning the German language was used exclusively. Both Pastor Eggold and Guettler conducted the services. Later Pastor Brandhorst and Steins also preached for the people of St. John’s. The same must be said of most of the divinity students that visited in this vicinity.
The little congregation grew. Others of our faith were added to those who had founded St.John’s. While the congregation was nevertheless yet comparatively small the members in conjunction with the Mission Board decided to call a pastor. This decision was reached inspite of the fact that these members realized what a load it would be to carry. Accordingly a candidate for the ministry was called. The call was received by Alferd Sueger who also accepted the summons.
Candidate Sueger was ordained and installed on the 25th of August, 1918. The services were held in the basement of the Christian Church and were conducted by Pastor Eggold. It is significant that they were conducted in English. The new pastor, when he received the call had been informed that his work would be in both German and English, but that English would be predominately used. Then it will be recalled that the year 1918 was the last of the Great War with its agitation against things German. The conditions at the time of the new pastor’s arrival made it advisable to use English entirely in worship. However, German services were soon reinstated and our congregation was never directly molested during those trying days of war and pestilence.
We have mentioned the war, but we shall not pass on without again calling to mind the influenza epidemic which swept the country during the fall of 1918. On account of the epidemic we were unable to conduct services for a period of ten weeks. We were thankful that the Lord kept us and sustained us.
What a joyful thanksgiving it was, when the armistice was signed! The close of the war made it possible for our congregation to use the German without the hampering restrictions.
Services continued to be held the hall that had been used. Later in the winter the congregational church was used. However, we were able to conduct only the evening services there. These were conducted in English. German services were held at the home of Mrs. Gilg. During these weeks until the beginning of spring the question of the kind of church building was weighed and discussed. A building committee, consisting of Messrs, Goos, Heller and E Otto had already been elected. Mr. Henke, the architect, was again consulted. He was told that the congregation would like to build a so called bungalow church. The idea was to construct a building that could later be used as a dwelling. The architect drew plans and these proved satisfactory. Our Mission Board was also in agreement with our plans. The plans were finally submitted to contractors for bids. When the bids were opened it was found that the firm of Anderson and Anderson were the low bidders. Accordingly the contract was awarded to them. Construction was started in April 1920. In the meantime the pastor again made a trip to the eastern part of the state to solicit loans for the Church Extension fund.
When he returned form this trip he was informed that our congregation would no longer use the congregational church. Services were then held in the home of Mrs. Gilg until the time when we would be in a position to use our new chapel.
It is not necessary to go into the details regarding the planning and the work that was done in order to bring the chapel to the stage of completion.
It was indeed a joyful day when we were able to dedicate our new home of worship to the service of God, Praise and thanks be unto the Lord for the blessing of this place, where His Honor was to dwell ,where the council of His will was to be proclaimed, where His love and His salvation were to be made known, and where He was to be worshipped. The dedication took place on the third Sunday of August 1920. Pastor Mutusikka, our Supt of Missions and Pastor Eggold and Heins were the speakers.
The handicap of lacking our own place of worship was now removed. The attendance immediately increased, It was now easier to do mission work,, This mission work to some extent was carried on by means of a canvas, looking up prospects etc, however these were secondary means. The real means to bring the people into our church was the invitation to heat the Gospel of Christ.
Our order of service at this time was as follows: The Sunday school met at 1:30; English services were held at 2:30; the German worship followed immediately after the English. This order was continued until in the spring of 1919, when our place of worship was changed to Rices’s Hall. Services were then held every Sunday morning.
Our place of worship was unattractive yes, we were constrained to say almost repellant to some. It is self-evident that such a condition would prove a great hindrance in our mission work.. Our people considered the question of securing a church home of our own. The first consideration was that of a location. The different available sites were considered by a number of members. Mr. Al Koth discovered the lots which at the present time are the property of St. John’s. We should state here that the members after careful consideration of this location were willing even anxious to buy this site.
The members made liberal contributions for this purpose. The deal for these lots on Broadway was almost immediately consummated. Of course it was of moment to the congregation the Mission Board of the Nebraska district be satisfied and pleased with the deal. We are sure the Board was glad to have us take this step! It was June 1919.
We had the location, but now the great question was the building of a church. The Mission Board was consulted relative to a loan from the Church Extension fund. On account of the depleted treasury the Pastor was encouraged to solicit short time non-interest bearing loans for the Extension Fund. During the summer plans for the building of a church or a chapel were discussed. Mr. E. Otto drew a sketch of a proposed chapel, and Mr. Henke furnished us with plans of a church, the size of which suited our purpose.
During this time these plans were being considered we were informed that the German Congregational Church was considering the sale of their property. We started negotiations with this congregation, because their property suited our purposes and was a bargin price on which the representatives of both congregations agreed. After considerable time had been spent on these negotiations, and after all the arrangements had been completed for the deal, trouble suddenly developed in the Congregational Church on account of the proposed sale and the deal fell through. Since it was already late in the frall, the congregation decided not to build until the spring of 1920.
Rev. A.G.Johnson accepted the call to Crawford, Nebraska and preached his farewell sermon in 1936.
Pastor Clarence Peters of Walnut, Nebraska was called and accepted the call, being installed on the fourth Sunday in Lent, March 22, 1936 by Pastor G. A. Karkau of Torrington, Wyoming, who had served the congregation during the vacancy. Pastor Peters preached his first sermon here March 30, 1936. On April 6th, 9:00am, he conducted his first devotional service on radio station KGK4, having time every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings. A men’s club was organized which also was affiliated with the national Lutheran Laymen’s League.
On Tuesday, September 8, 1936, the congregation decided to tear down the church in Mitchell and to rebuild new in Scottsbluff on 23rd and Broadway just north of our present church. On the following Thursday morning the work was begun under the leadership of Elmer Schoenbeck and on Saturday September 19, 1936, the work was finished. The lumber was immediately brought to Scottsbluff and stored with Karl Kath. On Sunday, November 1, a meeting was held with Mr. John Mueller of Seward, tentative plans were made as to the building and it was decided to build 68’x32’ with full basement. On November 4th the ground was staked out and on the 5th the work of excavating was begun. Before this time a building pledge committee had been elected and they secured pledges. It was estimated that the lumber from the Mitchell church was worth about $1500.00. The pledge committee was Elmer Schoenbeck, A. H. Worthman, and Karl Kath. The building committee elected was A. G. Kath, Herman Laessle, Frank Kolterman, Pastor Clarence Peters, ex officer, and Elmer Schoenbeck. The congregation did all the work of excavating the basement and building the concrete foundation, Mr. John Mueller of Seward, the carpenter and builder arrived December 1st to begin actual construction. It was decided to build the foundation of brick. These were purchased from Polemski in Hastings and were brought here by Fred Koening. The building work continued throughout the winter months. The cornerstone was presented to the congregation by Herstead Monument Co, and it was laid in a brief service December 6th, 1936.
The plastering was done by Mr. Frank Mueller of Potter.
The last service in the old church was held on Easter Sunday evening, March 28th, 1937, in which Holy Communion was celebrated, The attendance during the past months has proved beyond a doubt that a larger church was needed. On Easter morning 218 were packed into the church and the evening service was attended by 111. When totaled, members gave about 600 days in the construction of the church. At $4.00 a day, such labor would be valuded at $2400.00.
The new agenda was presented by Miss Martha Schoenbeck, the new offering plates by Mr. And Mrs. Fred Brodbeck, and the narthex window was presented by Mr. And Mrs. Otto Finke.
During the months following the attendance steadily increased as did also the offerings, Communion attendance improved.
The new church was dedicated April 4th 1937. The afternoon service was attended by 389, the evening service by 247. The total offering of the day amounted to $118.33. Sermons were preached by Pastors A. G. Johnson of Crawford, Nebraska and H.L.W. Schuetz of Cheyenne, Wyoming.
On April 18th, 1937, a class of two adults was confirmed. During the months following, the attendance, offering and communion attendance constantly increased. New members were gained, especially scattered Lutherans, some of whom had lived here for some time.
On March 16th the first reunion service was held which ha ever been here. The roll call revealed the sad fact that many of the confirmands had been permitted to drift away from the church.
On May 26th men’s club sponsored an entertainment to which members of the congregation had been invited. The purpose was more Christian fellowship. During the months following the interest, attendance and offerings steadily increased.
In July of 1937 the congregation collected over $100.00 to enable the pastor to purchase a much needed new car.
The Missionary Society arranged a fellowship dinner for their husbands in the spring of 1937 and this was repeated in the fall. These dinners were much enjoyed. The Walther League enjoyed a steady growth. In October 1937. Bible study was inaugurated for every Wednesday evening, On February 13th, 1938, the Walther League entertained the neighboring societies at a Unite the Youth Fellowship dinner, attended by Walther Leagues from Torrington, Gurley, Potter, Kimball, Sidney and South divide. 116 plates were set.
On March 13th 1938, a class of 8 adults was confirmed. This brought the communicant membership to 179. On April 3rd a fellowship dinner and entertainment was arranged in observation of the first anniversary of the church dedication. 140 attended and the get-together was much enjoyed.
Our little congregation experienced a steady growth. From the spring of 1918 to the spring of 1922 the voting membership increased from 8 to 19, the communicants from 16 to 30, and the number of souls from about 50 to about 100. Thus the Lord blessed the humble and weak efforts of His servants. It is fitting that a word should be written about organizations that were started within the congregation. The Sunday School was started before St. John’s had become a comparatively old congregation. Before the arrival of the first pastor it was taught by those in charge of the services. Later Mr. Keller became superintendent. The new pastor took charge soon after his advent, since Mr. Keller was called to the colors. The pastor was assisted by Miss Clara Genz and after her marriage to Pastor Guetter Miss Lydia Genz taught the primary class. Later Mr. H. A. Stiel also assisted in the teaching.
In the summer of 1921 ladies of St’ John’s organized a Ladies Circle. This organization continued to hold regular meetings every month. The members through their activities helped support works of charity and helped the congregation as they did for instance purchase the first communion set.
A Young People’s Society was organized soon after the dedication of the chapel. The main feature of this organization was to be the Bible class. Regular meetings of the class were held every week. The young people also gave a thought to the social side of their gatherings. Various social affairs and entertainment were given by them. The first of these was the entertainment the young people gave
the visiting pastors of the Western Nebraska-Wyoming Conference during their conference held at St. John’s in the fall of 1920.
It need hardly be stated that regular instruction was given in preparing our boys and girls for confirmation. The first class was confirmed in the new church two weeks after the dedication. The first adult class was confirmed in the spring of 1921.
Another milestone in the history of St. John’s is the entrance of the congregation into the membership of the Synod. The congregation was accepted as a member at the meeting of the Nebraska District held at Lincoln in August, 1921.
The following order of service was adopted in August 1920: English service every Sunday morning; German services on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Sunday in the afternoon; English services every 2nd and 4th Sunday in the evening. This order remained in force until the fall of 1921 when it was decided to have German and English services alternately in the morning. However the annual meeting of the year 1921, it was decided to again have English services every morning and about one English service one month in the evening. We sought to again hold German services in the afternoon. The congregation thought that it could by this order of services better meet the needs of the members.
After the return of two calls which came to Pastor Sueger in 1921, the congregation left the decision of the acceptance or rejection of a call from the congregation in Malcolm, Ne to the pastor. Since the Postor felt that he was divinely called to Malcolm he asked the congregation for a peaceful dismissal, which was granted. Pastor Sueger preached his farewell sermon on the first Sunday in May 1922.