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GOOD HOPE
EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH
WEST SALEM
TOWNSHIP, MERCER COUNTY, PA
Among the earliest pioneers of Mercer County
were Jacob Keck, Jacob
Loutzenhiser, Daniel, Peter, and John Klingensmith, Pennsylvania
Germans from Old Westmoreland (Westmoreland County, PA), who settled in
West Salem Township in 1796. A
few years later they were joined by
Philip Schabandi, Jacob Erdmann, and Friedrich Eberhard,
forming a settlement of German-speaking people, in the midst of which
this mother church was born. The
German record of Good Hope Church begins with the year 1805, when Pastor John Michael Steck of
Greensburg visited his former parishioners and baptized the four
children of Peter and Katharina
Klingensmith. The
fact that the oldest of these four children was born, October 17, 1799,
would indicate that this was the first time the parents had access to
the means of grace since making their home in the wilderness. The fifth and sixth
children of this family were baptized by Rev.
Andreas Simon, August 14, 1808; the seventh and eighth by
Rev. Peter Rupert in 1814; and the ninth by Rev.
Carl Wilhelm Colsen in 1815.
The last recorded visit of Rev. John M. Steck was made
in 1812, when he baptized the child of Abraham
and Magdalena Keck, who also were former members of his
Westmoreland Parish. The
old record also makes mention of a missionary visit from Rev. Johannes Stauch, and the
name Good Hope, as well as a direct statement in his diary, leads us to
believe that this church was organized by Pastor Stauch in 1807. All these Lutheran pastors
were but missionary visitors, who had the spiritual welfare of the
scattered settlers in their hearts, and were ready to do what they
could to help them in the establishment of their church. Their first regular pastor
was Rev. Heinrich Huet,
a sturdy young German from Columbiana County, Ohio, who counted it no
hardship to travel a score of miles on horse back in order to render
ministerial service. His
name fills a large place in the old German Church Record, and shows
that he was the pastor of the congregation from January 19, 1815, to
April 7, 1827. All
these early services were conducted in German and were not likely more
frequent than once every eight weeks.
By his faithfulness the people were encouraged
to secure church ground and build a house of worship.
Peter
Klingensmith and Jacob Keck offered to donate a generous
acreage; and on this ground a substantial log church was built in 1816. This church was built of
such choice timber that it served the congregation for fifty-three
years. It was
probably dedicated by Pastor Huet, but no record of dedication can be
found. The deed for
the property was not executed until September 16, 1826, when the donors
conveyed 4 acres and 152 perches of ground to Frederick
Eberhardt and Abraham Keck, "Trustees of the German
meeting house in West Salem Township", for a nominal consideration. The successor of Pastor
Huet was Rev. Michael Kuchler,
a young member of his parish, whose name has been written large in the
annals of Mercer County. The
records show that his first pastorate in Good Hope extended from June
15, 1828, to June 2, 1839, when he resigned to accept a call to Erie. On October 5, 1828,
shortly after he had taken charge of the congregation, he was visited
by Bishop J. G. C. Schweizerbarth,
who administered the sacrament to the following communicants:
Bauer,
Maria Barbara
Bernhard,
Elizabetha
Bittenbinder,
Conrad
Bittenbinder,
Sarah
Blank,
Georg Adam
Blank,
Aaron
Blank,
Magdalena
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Busman,
Jacob
Eberhardt,
Friedrich
Eberhardt,
Katharina
Erdmann,
Hannah
Hamm, Jacob
Hamm, Maria
Kamerer,
Samuel
Keck, Jacob
Keck,
Abraham
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Keck,
Rebecca
Keck,
Elizabetha
Keck,
Magdalena
Loutzenhiser,
Maria
Leininger,
Katharine
Schwarz,
Michael
Schwarz,
Katharina
Williams,
Margaretha
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At this time a reorganization of Good Hope
was effected by the two ministers, when the following members of the
Church Council were elected: George
Adam Blank and Conrad Bittenbinder, Lutherans; and Jacob Kamerer and Jacob Hamm,
Reformed. It will
be noted that Lutherans and Reformed communed together in this service;
but this was not an unusual thing for that day.
The first Reformed pastor of Mercer County did
not enter the field until 1826, and prior to that time all ministerial
acts for the settlement were performed by Lutheran pastors. The only exception to this
rule was made by the occasional visit of a Reformed pastor, Rev. Johann Peter Mahnenschmidt, beginning
with May 27, 1818. Pastor
Kuchler's successor was Rev.
Friedrich Christian Becker, whose ministerial acts date
from June 28, 1840 to May 22, 1847.
During the latter part of his pastorate he
seems to have shared his work with Rev.
Theodore Hengist, whose ministerial acts date from May 31,
1846, to September 3, 1860. This
overlapping may be accounted for by the fact that the two men served
adjoining parishes during that time. Rev. Michael
Kuchler returned to Good Hope for his second pastorate
immediately after the resignation of Pastor
Hengist, and served until April 1, 1874.
During this time many changes occurred in the
parish, chief of which was the organization of Holy Trinity Church in
Greenville. This
organization gave an impetus to English preaching that was felt in all
the German congregations of the county, and the German gradually gave
way before the English in Good Hope.
In 1865 Good Hope and St. John's applied for
admission to the Pittsburgh Synod.
Good Hope Church was required to adopt a new
constitution, which was done, June 10, 1869.
This constitution was further revised in 1890. Another outstanding event
of the second pastorate of Rev.
Michael Kuchler was the building of the second church. The corner stone was laid
by the pastor, May 2, 1869, but not dedicated until some time later. At that time the
congregation numbered seventy-five members, and used German in the
greater part of her public services.
After the resignation of Pastor Kuchler, Rev. Herman Gilbert was asked
to supply the pulpit until the congregations of Mercer County Parish
could agree in calling a successor.
This arrangement continued until May 1, 1876,
When Rev. J. A. J. Zahn
took Good Hope Church under his care in connection with Lake Shore
Parish, and served it until the fall of 1878.
When Rev.
Jeremiah Fishburn became pastor of Holy Trinity Church,
Greenville, January 1, 1879, Good Hope was admitted to his parish, and
served until March 11, 1883. During
the years 1883 and 1884, Doctor H.
W. Roth was supply pastor; and then parish relations were
restored with St. John's Zion, and Salem.
With the exception of two years this relation
has remained unbroken until the present.
The following is a consecutive list of the
pastors: Rev. John M. Steck, Rev.
Johannes Stauch, Rev. Andreas Simon, Rev. Peter Rupert, Rev. C. W.
Colsen (supplies), 1805-1815; Rev.
Heinrich Huet, 1815-1827; Rev.
J. G. C. Schweizerbarth (supply) 1828; Rev. Michael Kuchler, 1828-1839; Rev. F. C. Becker, 1840-1847;
Rev. Theodore Hengist,
1847-1860; Rev. Michael Kuchler (second
term), 1860-1874; Rev. Herman
Gilbert (supply), 1874-1876; Rev.
J. A. J. Zahn, 1876-1878; Rev.
Jeremiah Fishburn, 1879-1883; Rev.
H. W. Roth, D.D. (supply), 1883-1884; Rev. C. A. Fetzer, 1884-1887; Rev. W. M. Rehrig, Ph.D.,
1887-1894; Rev. W. G. Dressler,
1895-1897; Rev. S. B. Stupp, 1897-1901;
Rev. Peter Riffer, 1902-1910;
Rev. Wilson Yeisley,
1910-1919; Rev. C. E. Schweikert,
1920-.
Note: The
above historical information is from the Memorial
History of the Pittsburgh
Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church by Ellis Beaver Burgess,
Beaver Printing Company, Greenville, Pa.
1925
In 1796 the Kecks,
Klingensmiths,
and Loutzenhisers from
Westmoreland County settled in West Salem Township, making possible the
founding of Good Hope Church in 1805.
To the old log church erected by these
pioneers came all the Germans of this part of the county to worship. Governed by ties of faith
and language they counted it no hardship to travel ten or twelve miles
to hear the word of God and receive the sacrament.
A second congregation was started in the Wolf Creek region near Grove City at an
early day, Michael Kuchler
assisting Pastor Henry Huet as
his catechist. This
teacher was given a license to preach by the Synod of Ohio, June 4,
1828, and became the outstanding figure in the history of the Lutheran
Church of Mercer County. He
helped to organize St. John's Church of
Delaware Township in 1837, which is now
organized as the strongest rural Protestant church of this region.
Note: The
above information is from Good
Hope
Church, Lutheran and Reformed, West Salem Township, Mercer County,
Pennsylvania, by Paul Miller Ruff.
Material
submitted by Beth Rollinson
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