DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it — and it's quite a story. Back in 1896, seven families in Bellville had a notion. They wanted a Lutheran congregation of their own, and with the help of the Reverend O.
W. Hartmann — a faculty member over at the Evangelical Lutheran College in Brenham — that's exactly what they got. Seven families.
That's it. That's what you start a church with when you're serious. Now, they didn't have a building yet, so early on they held their worship services in the Methodist church building.
Neighbors helping neighbors. Good Texas tradition. The congregation acquired one acre of land at this site, and by November of 1898 they had completed a frame building, steeple and all.
A real church. Then in 1899, the Reverend P. Gogolin was called as the congregation's first full-time minister, and he stayed on for two years.
Things were looking up. Then 1900 arrived. A hurricane reached Bellville that year, and it did not play favorites.
The German Methodist Church was completely destroyed. And the Lutheran church — that frame building with the steeple they'd finished just two years prior — was blown clean off its foundation. Now, at that point, some folks might've taken that as a sign.
These folks did not. The congregation repaired the damage and pressed on. But the years that followed were lean ones.
Part-time pastors. A small, inactive membership. The kind of quiet struggle that doesn't make headlines but can hollow a congregation out just the same.
That went on for several years. Then, in 1911, Pastor Hans Krause arrived. And things changed.
Under his leadership, the Sunday School expanded, the Ladies Aid Society was reactivated, a parsonage was built, and the church membership more than doubled. More than doubled. From seven families and a borrowed building to something that was genuinely growing.
The congregation kept at it, steady as you please, and in 1925 they built a brick sanctuary. No more worrying about the next storm taking it off its foundation. By the time this marker was placed in 1996 — a hundred years after those seven families first gathered — St.
John Lutheran Church was still standing, still serving its members, still serving the community. Seven families, one acre, and enough stubbornness to outlast a hurricane. That'll do.
What the marker says
This congregation was organized in 1896 by seven Bellville families assisted by the Rev. O. W. Hartmann, a faculty member of the Evangelical Lutheran College in Brenham (1891-1906). Early worship services were held in the Methodist church building. The Lutheran congregation acquired one acre of land for a church at this site and completed a frame building with a steeple in November 1898. The Rev. P. Gogolin was called as the congregation's first full-time minister in 1899, and remained for two years. A hurricane reached Bellville in 1900, completely destroying the German Methodist Church, and blowing the Lutheran church from its foundation. The congregation repaired the damage to the church structure. For several years the church struggled with part time pastors and a small, inactive membership, until the arrival of Pastor Hans Krause in 1911. Under his leadership the Sunday School expanded, the Ladies Aid Society was reactivated, a parsonage was built, and the church membership more than doubled. The congregation grew steadily, building a brick sanctuary in 1925. The church continues to serve the needs of its membership and the community as it has for more than 100 years. (1996)