The Beginnings of the 20th Century
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History - The Beginning of the 20th Century
1900
- The Beginning of the 20th Century
Let us make a survey of
the status of St. Peter's Church as a new
century dawned. The village of Elmhurst was no longer a
sleepy
hamlet, but an enterprising and growing village and developing more and
more as suburb of the burgeoning city of Chicago. The
congregation, established with so much effort by the pioneers in 1876,
was now a relatively strong congregation, consisting of about 150
families. They had a stately church building, achieved by
great
effort. They owned a schoolhouse immediately adjoining the
church
with an enrollment of 81 in 1903. The church now had a fine
pipe
organ, and a choir.
Then in 1904 came a
serious discussion with Pastor Berens as to his
continuance as pastor. He was aging markedly and told the
church
that he knew he could not do all he should but asked to be retained
until 1906, at which time he would retire. So the year 1906
brought to an end nineteen years,one of the longest period's
of
service of a pastor in our history.
Facing the challenge of
a new century and of a growing community St.
Peter's found new leadership in Reverend Alfred E. Meyer.
Church
attendance increased markedly; new members were won and the church
prospered. The parochial school enrollment grew in such a way
that a second room was added to the schoolhouse and a second teacher
was added. Pastor Meyer saw the need for English services but
found it difficult to persuade the leadership in that direction.
He did, however, foresee the need for a new church building
if
the church was to meet the needs of the growing community.
Unfortunately his tenure was brief, and in 1910 the congregation was
again looking for a new minister.
The Reverend Max
Hoeppner became the new pastor in the fall of 1910.
He was an able preacher, following a formal style, but found
himself caught in a period of change. A new generation had
grown
up, trained in American schools and no longer bound by German
tradition. The parochial school began to deline as parents in
increasing numbers began to send their children to the public school.
Demands for English services increased and had to be met.
The course of World War 1 brought about a prejudice against
German culture and the end of the war in 1918 also brought an end to
the old order of things. Pastor Hoeppner was highly respected
by
those who knew him, but the changing conditions motivated his
resignation in 1916.