Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, in my own words. Back in the 1840s, German settlers were putting down roots in this part of Texas, and a good many of them were Lutherans. No church building yet, so they did what faithful people do: they pulled chairs close in somebody's front room and held worship right there at home.

That went on until the right man found his way to the right place. The Reverend Christian Oefinger sailed out of Bremen, Germany, crossed the Atlantic, and came ashore at Galveston. From Galveston he made his way west to Castroville.

And that changed things. On January 29, 1852, Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church was organized. Twelve charter members signed on, along with their families and other organizers, most of them from Castroville and the communities nearby.

Twelve people. That was the seed. Now, a congregation needs more than faith to raise four walls and a roof.

Construction of the church building began in 1853, and to get it done, the congregation secured a loan of four hundred dollars from the general synod. Four hundred dollars. The congregants themselves provided the rock, the sand, and the timbers.

And when the building was finished, there was stone left over. They used it to erect a parsonage right next door. The church prospered and wove itself into the life of Castroville.

Pastor Oefinger made it more than a house of worship. In 1857, he held Castroville's first public school classes inside that Lutheran church building. Think about that.

The same walls that rang with Sunday hymns were the first classroom this town ever had. The years kept moving. In 1922, the old parsonage came down and a frame building went up in its place.

The original stone church itself, that sturdy structure the congregation had hauled rock and sand and timber to build, served the congregation all the way until 1939, when it was replaced by a new brick building. Ten years later, in 1949, an education annex was dedicated. In 1959, the church purchased the building right beside it, known as the Fuos Haus, and put it to work as a church office.

Then in 1960, they purchased a building that had been known as the George L. Haass Store and restored it for use as a youth building. And in 1996, that old frame parsonage found one more calling, becoming a Sunday school building.

From twelve charter members meeting in homes in the 1840s, to a loan of four hundred dollars and a pile of hand-gathered stone, to a brick sanctuary and a campus of buildings serving a whole community. Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church is still an active ministry in Castroville today, carrying forward what those first twelve members started on a January morning in 1852.

What the marker says

Many of the German settlers who arrived here in the 1840s were Lutherans who kept their religious traditions by meeting for worship in their homes. The Rev. Christian Oefinger sailed from Bremen, Germany, arriving in Galveston. From there he made his way to Castroville. Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church was organized on January 29, 1852, with 12 charter members, their families and other organizers, most from Castroville and surrounding communities. Construction of the church building began in 1853, with a loan for $400 secured from the general synod. Congregants provided the rock, sand and timbers. A parsonage was erected next to the church using the remaining stone. The church prospered and became an important part of the Castroville community. Pastor Oefinger held Castroville's first public school classes in the Lutheran church building in 1857. The parsonage was replaced with a frame building in 1922. The original stone church served the congregation until 1939, when it was replaced by a new brick building. An education annex was dedicated in 1949. The "Fuos Haus" beside the church building was purchased in 1959 for use as a church office. In 1960, the church purchased a building formerly known as the George l. Haass Store. It was restored for use as a youth building. The frame parsonage became a Sunday school building in 1996. Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church remains an active ministry within the community, following the example set forth by the members' ancestors throughout the church's history. (2000)