St. Peter Lutheran Church
Bowie, Montague County, Texas
Marker Inscription
German Lutheran immigrants who settled in this area in the late 19th century were added to The Rev. John C. Schulenberg's North Central Texas Mission itinerary in 1893. St. Peter Lutheran Church was organized in 1894. That year a small wood frame sanctuary was built on land (5 mi. NE) donated by Henry Husfeld. In 1903 The Rev. H.B. Wurthmann became St. Peter's first resident Pastor and in 1919 a new sanctuary/school building was erected. One service a month was conducted in German until 1940. Church facilities were moved here in 1948. The church continues to serve the local community. (1993)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
German Lutheran families who settled this corner of North Central Texas in the late 1800s were folded into the Rev. John C. Schulenberg's mission circuit in 1893, and organized St. Peter Lutheran Church the following year. A small frame sanctuary rose on land donated by Henry Husfeld, and by 1903 the congregation had its first resident pastor. German-language services continued once a month until 1940, a thread of the old country woven through decades of Texas prairie life.
Why it matters
The church traces how German immigrant communities planted their faith and language deep in the American heartland, holding onto mother-tongue worship well into the twentieth century.
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Related people
- · John C. Schulenberg
- · H.B. Wurthmann
- · Henry Husfeld
Themes & tags
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