History - The Beginnings
The
History of St. Peter's Church
Our St. Peter's Church
traces its origin back to the date of May 21, 1876.
The overall picture of
Elmhurst as a community in 1876 was that of a
predominantly German population on the north side, and of many estates
and solid homes of people of English descent and of the American middle
and upper class on the south side, together with the large campus of
the Evangelical Proseminary - now known as Elmhurst College.
The Call: "Upon the
request of many citizens of Elmhurst and
vicinity to undertake the building of a church in Elmhurst, we request
all those who wish to join in this enterprise and this noble purpose to
appear on Sunday May 21 at 2 o'clock in the afternoon in the Elmhurst
school house to discuss ways and means for the beginning of this worthy
cause and for its accomplishment. Elmhurst in May 1876."
It
was signed simply: "Several Citizens".
This appeal, in the
German language, was somehow brought to the
attention of the people of Elmhurst. We can only use our
imagination; perhaps it was a bulletin on the wall of the post office
or the bank, and news of this kind would have quickly spread from mouth
to mouth. In response to that general appeal twenty-three men
appeared on Sunday afternoon, May 21, 1876. By July 12th an
offer
was accepted by the first Church Council of a house and lot for which
they paid $1,300. This is the property on which our present
church building stands. It seems strange as we look back upon
this first year that the church was built on the south side of town
while most of the members lived on the north side. The reason
may
be found in the fact of its nearness to the Proseminary just a block
away. Although the records nowhere show this, the members of
the
Proseminary faculty, most of whom were ordained ministers, did much of
the early preaching until the first pastor was called.
It is surprising how
rapidly the members of this new church proceeded
from step to step in the developement of the congregation, apparently
without pastoral guidance. On July 30, 1876, the congregation
decided the dilemma of "brick versus frame" church by choosing to build
a frame structure modeled after the Addison Church (Immanuel), and
determined that the cost was not to exceed $4000. In August
the
contract was awarded to the local firm of Hahns and Haase for $3,995.
The church was a solid structure erected on a foundation of
Batavia limestone and with timbers so strong that when the building
came down forty-eight years later in March of 1924, to make way for the
new church, the wood was still sound and reusable. It was a
stately church with a tower ninety feet high, a tall interior with
three balconies along the sides and the rear, a panelled front wall
with an altar and a high pulpit which was entered by stairs from the
vestry. The college students filled the east balcony each
Sunday,
since church attendance was compulsory for them, and their strong and
hearty singing of the old choral tunes gave a decided lift to the
spirit of worship. The rear balcony was occupid later by the
church choir and the organ.
How difficult it must
have been to gather funds for the new church
building can be seen by a glance at the first subscription list.
The largest pledge was $100, followed by several in the
amount of
$75, and then some of $25 and $10, followed by many $5, $3 and $2
subscriptions. The majority of the people were poor. The
pay of a day laborer was from $1 to $1.50. The salary of the
pastor was $500 per year, paid in quarterly installments.
Not willing to rest
there, the young congregation resolved to engage in
two additional forward steps. They voted to purchase
a
cemetery, to be paid for by the sale of lots, and to build a
parochial schoolhouse, to accommodate fifty to sixty children.
The school was to be paid for by subscription.
The years that followed
were stormy years in the life of the young
congregation. We know almost nothing of the background of the
early pastors. Their tenure was brief. In the
spring of
1885 the congregation eleced as its pastor the Reverend Daniel Irion.
He was a young man of real distinction, gifted, educated, and
the
son of one of the outstanding leaders of the Evangelical Synod. With
the coming of Pastor Irion a new spirit seemed to enter the
congregation and the story years gave way to years of peace and
progress.
The respect for Pastor
Irion and his reputation spread beyond the
confines of the congregation. Only two years later the
Evangelical Proseminary called him to be its president.
When
he resigned at the end of World War 1, the Proseminary was reorganized
as Elmhurst Academy and Junior College, and finally as Elmhurst
College. Through the years St. Peter's was thought of as the
"College Church." Dr. Irion continued to be a beloved member
of
St. Peter's church until his death in 1935.
Following the happy
two-year pastorate of Dr. Irion, a new chapter
began in the story of St. Peter's and the congregation elected the
Reverend August Berens as its pastor in 1887. Several urgent
needs of the congregation faced the new pastor. The church
building needed renovation and the congregation needed to provide a new
parsonage as the old parsonage was beyond repair. The matter
of a
new parsonage became a subject of real concern after Pastor Berens who
made an urgent plea for the new facility. A fortunate
circumstnace presented itself. The City of Elmhurst was
planning
to build a new public school building on Cottage Hill Ave on the site
of the present Hawthorne School. The old public school was
located on a lot just east of St. Peter's and the city was offering the
property for sale. The lot was purchased for $620 and by 1892
a
parsonage committee was appointed.
Faced also with the need
of a new schoolhouse because of the growing
enrollment in the parochial school and outdated facilities, the
congregation decided on a very adventurous and forward step.
They
voted to build a new parsonage and a new schoolhouse. By 1893
the
schoolhouse and parsonage were finished. The parsonage was
used
by the congregation continuously until the end of the pastorage of Dr.
Edwin Kock, when it was converted to use for church offices and for a
custodian's residence, until it was razed in 1969.