St. Paul’s Evangelical Church

In the summer of 1896, St. Paul’s began as a small mission church under the leadership of Rev. Carl Lohse. Rev. Lohse left the congregation in 1898 and for the next eight years, there was no minister, no services, and no activities. Later on the congregation was reorganized in 1906 with a 13-member congregation and was affiliated with the Evangelical Synod of North America.

In August 1907, three lots on Ellsworth Street were purchased for $850, with the intent to build a church and parsonage. The church also bought three lots behind (across the alley) that border North Main Street.

On September 11, 1910 the church was dedicated and the first Sunday service was held in the new St. Paul’s German Evangelical Church.

Services were offered in both German and English. Despite its efforts, the congregation remained small. Pastors came and went, each having relatively short pastorates.

Following World War II, the congregation began to grow under the leadership of Rev. Theodore Mayer. Unfortunately, Pastor Mayer’s service was cut short when he went to mail a letter in between Sunday Services and was run over by a train. The congregation continued to grow under the guidance of the next minister, Rev. Harold Wilke.

In 1951 the church underwent a large interior renovation and the outside was renovated a year prior. This is what can be seen today. By the mid 1950’s, the congregation determined they had outgrown their present location. The three lots on Main Street, which had been purchased for future expansion, were not zoned for this use, and were of no use to the congregation.

In 1959, seven and one-half acres of land was purchased on Woodstock Street, and a new church building was built. The congregation made the move in 1960, and sold the old St. Paul’s on Ellsworth Street to the Nunda Masonic Lodge, where the lodge still resides today.

Current Lodge Pictures