Collected and posted by BILL
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OCONTO COUNTY
Wisconsin
.Evangelical Lutheran Immanuel Church.
(Oconto German Lutheran Church)
501 Madison Street
(now 511)
.First American Lutheran Church.
City of Oconto
First wood church building - 1874 (destroyed by fire)
Present brick church building - 1889
 The original Evangelical Lutheran Immanuel Church began to form after the traveling missionary Pastor Charles Lieb visited Oconto in 1873. At that time, the congregation asked Rev. Lieb to pastor and he accepted, leading the way to formal organization of the church on January 1st, 1874. A home was purchased for the parsonage and the first wood frame structure was built and dedicated to serve as the church in November of that same year. The dimensions were 30 X 40 feet. Prior to building the church, Lutherans attended services that were held at the Methodist Church. In 1873 Gottlieb Luhn was among the first residents in Oconto to help organize the Evangelical Lutheran (Immanuel) Congregation. The charter members had been served for the previous year by the Methodist minister, meaning that they had resided in the county at least since 1872. Two other charter member living in Oconto County were Phillip Bitters and Louis Bitters. Gottlieb Luhn and Phillip Bitters were elected among the three first church trustees on January 1, 1874. LUHN FAMILY PAGE This congregation served as the home base for the Evangelical Lutheran Christus Church congregation in Pensaukee under Pastor W. Buehring in the late 1870s and the Evangelical Lutheran Zion Church congregation in Stiles during the 1880s under Pastor G. F. Keller. Fire seriously damaged the first wooden church building in 1889 and the congregation built the present brick church that same year on Madison Street. It remains in service to the First American Lutheran Church congregation.
OBITUARY Mrs. William Zimmerman, died at the home of her son-in-law, Julius Kiebl (this should read Kuehl) in the North ward Saturday at the age of 77 years. She is survived by two sons and three daughters, all of whom are married. The funeral took place from the German Lutheran Church (this was then called The Evangelical Lutheran Immanuels Congregation) Monday afternoon at two o'clock, Rev. Eisenbach officiating. (note: This is the Lutheran Church that the whole Zimmerman family belonged too, and the name was changed April 7, 1935 to First American Lutheran Church.) ZIMMERMAN FAMILY PAGE
A roof fire badly damaged the church and steeple in 1930. Repairs were soon completed. By 1935 the name was changed from Evangelical Lutheran Immanuel to First American Lutheran Church by congregation vote. German service was still being offered twice a month in 1943 although the English was then the predominant language used. |
