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Lutheran Historical Conference NewsletterVol. 40, No. 4 … November 2002 … ISSN 0460-0274
New MembersWelcome to the following new members who joined the LHC since the last issue of this Newsletter:
Richard H. Baur, 1927–2002An active member of LHC from Forest City, Iowa, Dick Baur died unexpectedly on September 30, 2002. The Rev. Dr. Baur was professor emeritus in religion at Waldorf College in Forest City, having taught there from 1968 to 1992. Born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, he was a graduate of Capital University in 1948 and Capital Seminary in 1952, both in Columbus, Ohio. He was ordained in 1952 by the American Lutheran Church. He married Mardelle Mueller on July 1, 1956. He served as parish pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, Andover, Iowa, 1952–1956; Our Savior Lutheran Church, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 1956–1962; and St. Peter Lutheran Church, Dubuque, Iowa, 1962–1964. He later also received a second master’s degree from Wartburg Seminary, Dubuque and his Ph.D. in 1968 from the University of Iowa. Dick’s research focused on the contributions of pioneer pastor and traveling home missionary Paul Henkel (1754–1825). In his retirement he continued to work on translating Henkel’s hand-written journals from German to English. Dick is survived by his wife Mardelle and three children: SueAnn Goeken (Lee) of Kaysville, Utah; Aleta Mikels (Russ) of Bloomfield Iowa; and John Baur (Melinda) of Normal, Illinois; and six grandchildren and a sister, Mary Alice Schairer of Aurora, Colorado. Funeral services took place on October 3, 2002, at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Forest City, Iowa, with burial at Calamus, Iowa. Condolences may be sent to Mrs. Mardelle Baur, 112 Central Dr., Forest City, IA 50436. News by/for/about MembersJames S. Hamre has written a centennial history of Waldorf College, Forest City, Iowa. Titled Continuity and Change: 100 Years—Waldorf College, the book discusses the development of the school from its beginnings as an academy started by Norwegian-American Lutherans, through its years as a two-year college, to its present status as a baccalaureate institution affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. An addendum on “Waldorf Pioneers” contains 12 brief biographical sketches of deceased persons for whom buildings have been named. The book is available for $25, plus $5 shipping and handling, from the Waldorf College Bookstore, 106 South Sixth Street, Forest City, IA 50436. Elisabeth Wittman, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, 321 Bonnie Lane, Elk Grove Village, IL 60007, participated in a conference “Rescuing the Memories of our Peoples,” Rome, Italy, September 29–October 6, 2002. She made a presentation entitled, “The Development of an Archives Program for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.” The conference was sponsored by the International Association for Mission Studies-International Association of Catholic Missiologists at the Urbania Pontifical University. The group made presentations and discussed issues related to “mission” archives, that is, the archives of churches formed by mission efforts, mainly those of the “third world.” The persons invited to attend were from all over the world and was comprised mainly of archivists but also some church historians and administrators. Visits to several archives were given during the meeting, including those of the Society of Jesus, the Vatican and St. Peter’s Basilica. The group also made a special visit to the excavations under the Basilica to see the tomb of St. Peter. Resource Offered[Note: The set offered by Mrs. Suelflow has found a buyer.] Mrs. Gladys Suelflow is offering for sale bound copies
of the Concordia Historical Institute Quarterly that had belonged to her
late husband, Dr. August R. Suelflow. There are a total of 15 volumes in a red
binding covering the years 1928 to 1991 (Volume 64). The last volume is unbound
issues and the volume covering 1976-1979 is missing. Best offer and postal
charges will The Saga of a Lost Parish RegisterBy Frederick S. WeiserOver the years, I have been translating German church registers from Pennsylvania and Maryland. Some of those said to be lost have turned up in the weirdest of circumstances. One was found in a teakettle at a country auction, one appeared at a yard sale, an entire set was sold in the auction of the library of the congregation’s historian. Since many Lutheran congregations in the area were once in “union church” arrangements with a Reformed congregation, “lost” records have turned up with the sister Reformed church and in the archives of the United Church of Christ. At any moment, I could provide a list of missing records which may be hiding somewhere. Early in 2002 a Mennonite friend alerted me that a dealer had offered the record of a church of both denominations begun in 1792 and said to be from Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania. I immediately contacted a representative of the congregation at Mifflinburg, which is in Union County; we agreed that they would try to raise funds to buy the record. While this was pending, I was able to see the record. As is common with records of that vintage, one can usually find the names of clergy involved, if at all, only in the lists of communicants and confirmands. A good seven names of Lutheran clergy were noted, another four or five of Reformed pastors. Not one of the Lutherans served Mifflinburg, Union County! I called off the fund-raiser there. But whose record was it? By studying the biographies of the pastors named, I realized these persons served in Columbia County—where there is a town with a Lutheran congregation named Mifflinville. Thomas Mifflin was a popular Pennsylvania governor with numerous townships and one county name for him. At one time, Mifflinville was called Mifflinburg! Upon contacting Erwin Roux, pastor of St. John’s, and reading some of the common surnames in the record to him, he exclaimed, “That’s us. I just buried the last of the ________ family locally.” The history of the Danville Conference of the Ministerium of Pennsylvania has a short history of the congregation, which is sketchy at best and inaccurate at worst. Charles Glatfelter did not know the congregation began within the years covered in his Pastors and People, Volume 1,* since there is apparently no other evidence the congregation existed. He even listed one of the pastors, Carl Solomon Frederici, as dying in Mifflinburg, Union County, since his estate papers also refer to Mifflinburg, a logical error to say the least. The sequel is that the register has now been translated and is headed for preservation in a Lutheran archival repository. How it got away from its home is a mystery; the dealer acquired it, he reports, in Maryland! *Glatfelter, Charles H. Pastors and People, German Lutheran and Reformed Churches in the Pennsylvania Field, 1717-1793. Volume 1, Pastors and Congregations. Breinigsville, Pennsylvania: The Pennsylvania German Society, 1980. What Will the Next LHC Newsletter Contain?This newsletter will be able to fulfill its intended purpose of being a clearinghouse of information for archivists, historians and librarians only if you provide material for it. Please send material for publication to the editor. Items of interest to readers will include notice of research in progress, new appointments, publications, meetings and celebrations planned or held, bibliographical materials and generally anything of interest to LHC members. The editor cannot promise to print everything received, although all submissions are welcomed. The LHC Newsletter is issued four times a year: February, May, August and November. The November issue includes the annual “Index of Writings in the Field of American Lutheranism.” The deadline for each issue is the 15th of the month prior to each issue. Please send items to Elisabeth Wittman, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Archives, 8765 W. Higgins Rd., Chicago, IL 60631, or FAX: 773-380-2977; or E-mail: ewittman@elca.org. The deadline for the next issue is 15 January 2003. © 2002 Lutheran Historical Conference |
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