Words From the President
Conference Publications
Back Volumes of the Essays and Reports and Monographs
New Conference Brochures
LHC Board Meeting
Annual Bibliography
LHC Leadership Update
News By/About/For Members
"Ecclesia Plantanda"
New Lutheran Historical Marker
CHI: New Employees, Web, and More
LCMS Anniversary: Continued
Slovak Archives in Chicago
Local Historical Societies
New Resources
The sudden death last November of our former President Jim Schaaf, and Professor at Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Columbus, still requires adjustment, even though more than half a year has passed. Most of us in the Lutheran Historical Conference knew him not only as a scholar, translator, historian, teacher, churchman, and administrator, but also as true colleague and friend in Christ. Others have elsewhere express more eloquently and more fully the significance of Jim's multi-dimensional life and work. The Lutheran Historical Conference will be impoverished by his absence. For many years he served as treasurer, membership chair, and editor of the newsletter. It was perhaps fitting that his last responsibilities were those of president. Under him the Conference transformed its commission structure into a system of commissioners in order to increase the nimbleness of those who wish to carry the work of the Conference forward. Those of us who worked with Jim knew of his organizational ability, self-discipl
One of the assignments which Jim had accepted for the next year was editing the 1994 and 1996 essays and reports. Ray Bost and Ray F. Kibler III have generously agreed to accept the responsibility of compiling and editing the essays from the 1994 conference in Rincon. David Wartluft has agreed to edit the 1996 essays. Marvin Huggins has agreed to see the revision of Bob Wiederaenders' Synods of American Lutheranism, now to be known as The Historical Guide to Lutheran Church Bodies in North America. Marvin also serves as the webmaster for the LHC. Check out our homepage: www.chi.lcms.org/lhc. Publication of these volumes is scheduled for late this year and distribution early next year.
Another of Jim Schaaf's quiet contributions had been serving as the distributor for the publications of the Conference. The inventory has now been sent to Valparaiso University. For the time being, those wishing to obtain back volumes may do so by writing: James W. Albers, Office of Graduate Studies, Valparaiso University, Valparaiso, IN 46383. Phone: 219-464-5313. E-mail: jalbers@exodus.valpo.edu. The cost is $7.50 per volume, plus shipping and handling.
New brochures are now available and have been distributed to all board members. Ray F. Kibler III, the membership commissioner, will be including a copy with your membership dues. If you would like additional copies, please let me know (same address as above), and I will be happy to send a supply.
The board will meet in the Chicago offices of the ELCA on October 22, 1997. In addition to reviewing the various activities of the conference, special attention will be given to the 1998 meeting at Wagner College in New York. Bob Scholz and Bob Haney are serving as co-chairs.
If you have suggestions or concerns about the conference or American Lutheran history, please feel free to pass them along to any board member.
The annual bibliography attempts to be as complete as possible, but we know that the lists are not exhaustive. Databases are becoming much better and more complete, but there are inevitably items which we do not and have not caught. We need your help in identifying articles and books which we somehow missed. Some that were missed over the last several years are included in this issue. Thanks to Gregg Roeber for forwarding them. At some point, the Conference will probably attempt a complete bibliography of all items from the last quarter century or so. We will take all the help you can give to make the list as complete as possible.
-- James W. Albers, LHC President
David J. Wartluft, Treasurer:
Phone: 215-248-6328Peter Christoph, 181 Maple Ave., Selkirk, NY 12158, archivist for the Upstate New York Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, notes that he is the author of the biographical article on Christoph Wilhelm Berkenmeyer (1687-1751) in the upcoming Oxford University Press' American National Biography. Berkenmeyer was missionary pastor who had oversight for numerous congregations in colonial New York and New Jersey. Berkenmeyer's name was not included in the list of Lutherans to be included in this new resource, as reported in a previous issue of this Newsletter.
James K. Echols, Lutheran Theological Seminary, 7301 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia, PA, 19119, has been elected president of the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. Jim is the first African-American to head a Lutheran seminary in North America. Since 1982, he has taught church history and more recently served as dean of the Philadelphia Seminary.
Marvin A. Huggins, 5732 White Pine Dr., St. Louis, MO 63129-2936, is co-chair of the Local Arrangements Committee for the Midwest Archives Conference Fall meeting in St. Louis, October 16-18, 1997.
L. DeAne Lagerquist, St. Olaf College, 1520 St. Olaf Ave., Northfield, MN 55057-1098, was part of a panel discussing "The Problem of Doing Denominational History," in the plenary session of the Spring 1997 meeting of the American Society of Church History, held at Vanderbilt Divinity School, in April. Along with DeAne, panelists Henry Bowden, Dennis Dickerson and David Holmes, discussed issues and methods, angles encountered in his/her work within a specific religious tradition.
Michael J. Kurtz, 960 Aqua Ct., Annapolis, MD 21401, has recently published, John Gottlieb Morris: Man of God, Man of Science, a biography of a Lutheran pastor who was also a cultural leader; led the movement from German-language liturgy to English; created libraries at two research institutions, the Peabody Institute and Maryland Historical Society; founded Lutherville Female Academy and the town of Lutherville; primary nurturer of the seminary and college at Gettysburg; pioneered natural science including collecting and classifying of specimens, that helped in developing the collections of the Smithsonian Institution; and finally, historian, serving both the Lutheran Historical Society and the Society for the History of Germans in Maryland. Michael is on the staff of the National Archives, College Park Maryland and is president of the Lutheran Historical Society, Gettysburg. The Morris biography will be available on June 2, 1997, and will be $20, plus $3.50 shipping and handling (Maryland residents add $1.00 sales tax). Orders may be sent to: Attention: Publications Marketing, Maryland Historical Society, 201 West Monument St., Baltimore, MD 21201.
Mahlon H. Hellerich, 1112 Highland Ave., Bethlehem, PA 18018-2139, editor of The Periodical, of the Lutheran Historical Society of Eastern Pennsylvania, notes that he is working together with the Rev. James K. Echols, faculty advisor, for the LHSEP essay contest for students of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. The contest is for the best essay dealing with the history of Lutheranism on the territory of the former Ministerium of Pennsylvania. The essay is published in The Periodical and the essays submitted for the 1995-1996 academic year are currently being read by the evaluation committee.
A. Greg Roeber, Dept. of History, 108 Weaver Bldg., University Park, PA 16802-5500, has several publications to report: Good and Faithful Servants: A Centennial History of the Lutheran Home and Services for the Aged, Arlington Heights, Illinois, 1892-1992 (Arlington Heights, 1991); Palatines, Liberty and Property: German Lutherans and Colonial British North America (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University, 1993); Lift High the Cross: A Century of Grace Evangelical Lutheran School, 1896-1996 (River Forest, Illinois, 1996); "The Mosheim Society and the Preservation of German Education and Culture in the New Republic, 1789-1813," in Henry Geitz, et al eds., German Influence on Education in the United States (Cambridge, 1994), 157-176; "Der Pietismus in Nordamerika im. 18 Jhd.," in Martin Brecht et al eds., Die Geschichte des Pietismus, 4 volumes, (Göttingen, 1992- )II: 1995, 666-699; and "J.C. Helmuth, Evangelical Charity and the Public Sphere in Pennsylvania, 1793-1800," Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biogr
Richard W. Solberg, 2756 Lakewood Place, Westlake Village, CA 91361, has written an article, "What Can the Lutheran Tradition Contribute to Christian Higher Education?", in Models for Christian Higher Education, edited by Richard T. Hughes and William B. Adrian (Grand Rapids: Michigan: William T. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1997). Also, Dick has been working on a special project for the Lutheran Educational Conference of North America, to identify existing oral history interviews relating to individual Lutheran colleges and universities or Lutheran higher education in general. Librarians and archivists from Lutheran educational institutions in the U.S. and Canada have been contacted regarding this project, but historians who may have conducted independent projects may also hold valuable oral history resources. Anyone with such materials is asked to contact Dick: phone: 805-379-9539 or solberg@callutheran.edu.
Norman J. Threinen, Concordia Lutheran Seminary, 7040 Ade Blvd., Edmonton, Alberta T5B 4E3, has written a supplement to the 1982, "A Sower Went Out," the Central District History of the Lutheran Church - Canada. This supplement covers the last fifteen years including the development of Lutheran Church - Canada as an indigenous body and the entire development of the church in Northwest Ontario, including the Finns. This project is part of a larger project Norm has been working on for some time and concentrating on again, i.e., a general history of Lutheranism in Canada.
In anticipation of the 250th anniversary of the oldest Lutheran church body in North America, Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia has created an exhibit of photographs, paintings, documents and artifacts that trace the history of the Ministerium of Pennsylvania and the life of the "patriarch" of Lutheranism in North America, Henry Melchior Muhlenberg. The exhibit, in the Schick Rotunda of the Krauth Memorial Library, runs from April through November 1997.
The LTSP display includes artifacts from several "Muhlenberg" congregations: models of the Philadelphia churches, Zion and St. Michael's, a colonial altar still bearing the marks of its use when the congregation served a hospital during the Revolutionary War (Zion, Spring City), and a mural of the 1768 meeting of the Ministerium to dedicate New Hanover Lutheran Church. Other materials--including Muhlenberg's ordination certificate, the journals of Muhlenberg, the first German Bible published in the United States, and the original notes of C.P. Krauth on the Galesburg Rule--come from the library's own collection or from the Lutheran Archives Center at Philadelphia, the Northeast Regional Archives of the ELCA.
A color catalogue of selected materials from the exhibit, "Henry Melchior Muhlenberg and the Colonial Lutheran Church," is also available upon request. Interested parties should contact the librarian, Prof. David J. Wartluft, Lutheran Theological Seminary, 7301 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19119, 215-248-6328; e-mail: dwartluft@ltsp.edu. (The commemorative booklet was made possible by the generous donations of Mr. and Mrs. H. Ober Hess, esq., Dr. Ivan W. Hess, Rodale Press, and Dr. & Mrs. J. Woodrow Savacool.)
The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission at its March 1997 meeting, approved 21 new historical markers, including one in honor of the Rev. Jehu Jones (1786-1852), first African-American Lutheran pastor in the United States and activist in mid-19th century reform movements. The marker will be located in Philadelphia, which is where Jones served as pastor of St. Paul's Lutheran Church. Nominations for historical markers are reviewed by an independent panel of historians. There are over 1,700 markers around the state to recognize the contributions of people, events or places that are significant in the history of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. For further information, contact: Amy Riggleman, Press Secretary, PHMC, 717-783-9882.
The Concordia Historical Institute has already had a busy year, in planning and anticipating several events and activities for the 150th anniversary celebration of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. (See related article below.) In late February, the institute initiated a World Wide Web home page, accessible at: http://www.chi.lcms.org.
Other changes for CHI include the addition of two new staff members. The Rev. Mark Loest joined the staff in November 1996, as the new reference and research assistant and museum curator. Among his first projects was to create, "Philipp Melanchthon 500th Anniversary Exhibit," on display at the Institute through November 1997. Loest joins the staff from St. Paul Lutheran Church, Brownstown, Indiana. He has previous experience in teaching, serving as German interpreter and translating German theological documents and articles. His next project: an exhibit for the 150th anniversary of the LCMS.
A second new employee is Kristina Gray Perez who joined the CHI staff in March as project archivist under a three-year grant of $126,500, funded by an anonymous donor. The work Perez will undertake will be to create inventories, finding aids and cataloging for archival records and personal papers collections of the Institute. Among her first projects, Perez will be working with the papers of President J. W. Behnken. She joins the staff from the University of Missouri, Columbia, Western Historical Manuscripts Collection, where she had similar responsibilities, including working on large collections, such as the papers of former Missouri Senator Thomas F. Eagleton.
Also of note for CHI is the announcement of the annual Pieper lectures, September 25-16, 1997, co-sponsored by Luther Academy and the 24th Biennial Conference on Archives and History, November 6-8, 1997. For further information on these and other activities and events, contact: CHI, 801 DeMun Ave., St. Louis, MO 63105; 314-505-7901; e-mail: chi@trucom.com.
Since the last issue of this Newsletter, some additional information regarding the 150th Anniversary of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod in 1997 has been received. Along with the video previously noted, the April and May issues of Lutheran Witness (the Synod's monthly magazine), have been completely turned over to a review of the Synod's 150 years, including a full-color timeline (in April) and full-color photographs (in May). Additional copies of the two-issue sets are available for $1.50 (order # 51-0003), from: Concordia Publishing House, 3558 S. Jefferson St., St. Louis, MO, 63118; 314-268-1000.
Another commemoration of the anniversary was the unveiling of a mural, with seven panels that include scenes of LCMS history, on April 25, 1997 at the Synod's International Center. At the same time, a smaller replica of the mural was sent to each office of the LCMS districts and later this year copies will be sent to all LCMS colleges, universities and seminaries.
Also of note is the assembling of a three-foot high time capsule, made of glass for viewing of the contents, on display at the International Center (1333 S. Kirkwood Rd., St. Louis) throughout the year. Thereafter, the time capsule will reside at the Concordia Historical Institute until it is opened on the Synod's 200th anniversary, April 26, 2047.
The Slovak Zion Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, has designated the ELCA Churchwide Archives, Chicago, as the new location for its archives. Previously, the ELCA Region 7 Archives, Philadelphia, had served this purpose. Many records, collected, but not deposited in an archives were brought to the Chicago archives by Bishop Juan Cobdra and as of February 1997, the collection totaled approximately 56 cubic feet.
Formed in 1919 by Slovak congregations in the United States and Canada, without synodical affiliation, it joined the United Lutheran Church in America as a non-geographical constituent synod in 1920. The synod continues as the only such synod of the ELCA today. Volunteers from the synod, along with Bishop Cobdra are working with the records, which include official records, periodicals and books, and materials from congregations, including some records of disbanded congregations. For further information, contact: Slovak Zion Synod, ELCA, 8340 N. Oleander, Niles, IL 60714-2552; 847-470-1890.
The Pennsylvania German Society's 1997 Annual Meeting took place at the Schwenkfelder Library and Perkiomen School, Pennsburg, Pennsylvania, May 2-3. The theme of the meeting was: "The Goschenhoppen and Schwenkfelder Region," with historical tours, research opportunities, exhibits and presentations on the theme. The impetus for the meeting locale is the Society's 1997 annual volume, A Picture of the Pennsylvania Germans, based on the renowned fraktur collection of The Schwenkfelder Library, and which is published jointly with the Library. For further information, contact: The PGS, P.O. Box 397, Birdsboro, PA 19508-0397, 610-582-1441.
The Lutheran Historical Society of Greater New York, held a workshop on developing congregational archives and writing congregational histories, May 10, 1997, at the Wartburg Home, Mount Vernon, New York. The event was jointly sponsored by the Eastern District, Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and the Metropolitan New York Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Representatives of the historical society, along with the ELCA's Region 7 Archives, Philadelphia, and Metropolitan New York Synod Archives Committee, also met in March 1997, to begin plans for local arrangements and program for the upcoming October 1998 Lutheran Historical Conference meeting to be held at Wagner College, Staten Island.
The Moravian Archives is holding its annual German Script Seminar, June 2-13, 1997. The seminar prerequisite is a reading knowledge of German, with two years of college German or equivalent. No conversational ability is required, since instruction is in English. The cost of the annual seminar is $350, including tuition and materials. Room and board are extra, but are available either at low cost from Moravian College or at local hotels and motels. For further information, contact: The Moravian Archives, 41 W. Locust St., Bethlehem, PA 18018; 610-866-3255.
Palatines to America, a German genealogy society, holds their 1997 National Conference, June 11-13, at the Grand Wayne Center, Fort Wayne, Indiana. The meeting coincides with the Fort Wayne Germanfest and includes many presentations on research, resources, art, computer applications, as well as special attention to German history and resources in Indiana. Among the featured speakers will be LHC member, Fred Weiser. For further information, contact: Palatines to America, Box 101, Capital University, Columbus, OH 43209-2394, or http://genealogy.org/~palam/nat.lconf.html
Later this year, the Lutheran Historical Society, Gettysburg, will sponsor a joint Lutheran-Reformed discussion meeting on "Historical Heritage," with the Evangelical and Reformed Society and the Mercersburg Society, at the Lancaster Theological Seminary, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, October 11, 1997. Coordinators of the meeting are Dr. John Payne, Lancaster Theological Seminary and Dr. Susan Hedahl, Lutheran Theological Seminary, Gettysburg. For further information, contact: LHS,G, 61 W. Confederate Ave., Gettysburg, PA 17325.
Hope for All Generations, Lutheran Social Service of Iowa, 125 Years, 1870-1995 (Minneapolis: Kirk House Publishers, 1996) by the Rev. George Hanusa, Director of Public/Church Relations, Lutheran Social Service of Iowa, has recently been published. The book covers the evolution that brought about the Iowa agency starting with the early history that includes Swedish, Norwegian, Danish and German Lutheran children's homes in Stanton, Beloit, Elk Horn and Muscatine, to the variety of services offered today, including disaster relief, such as the Great Flood of 1993. The book is available for $8.00, plus $3.50 handling (Minnesota residents add $.52 sales tax) from: Kirk House Publishers, P.O. Box 39759, Minneapolis, MN 55439; 612-835-1828; fax: 612-835-2613.
John W. Nielsen had edited, Tante Johanne, Letters of a Danish Immigrant Family, 1887-1910 (Blair, Nebraska: LUR Publications, 1996). The letters are those of Johanne Nielsen (1842-1902) and her family, who came to Iowa from Denmark in the 1870s. The correspondence dates from 1887-1943, including letters of her seven daughters and other family members. The originals of these letters, all in the Danish language, are from the 12,000 letters of the Hansen-Mengers Collection of the Danish Immigrant Archives, Dana College, Blair, Nebraska. Many of the letters were received by the Rev. C.C. Mengers, pioneer pastor of the United Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church from his aunt in Algona, Iowa. Among topics discussed in the letters are "from daily activities of pioneer farm women to railroads, rural schools, prices, immigrant publications, the Inner Mission, the Panic of 1893 and the Spanish-American War." The book is $12.95, plus $3.50 shipping and handling (Nebraska residents add $.65 sales tax) and available
The Rev. Morris "Bo" and Mrs. Dorothy Sorenson, have written, Beyond Expectation, The Story of a Family in Mission, which tells of their lives from small town, to global missionaries and to churchwide executive service. The Sorensons served as missionaries in Japan, and later Bo served as executive for global mission and assistant to the bishop of both the American Lutheran Church and Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The book is available for $17 (Minnesota residents add $.91 sales tax) from: Kirk House Publishing, P.O. Box 39759, Minneapolis, MN 55439; 612-835-1828.