First Lutheran Church celebrates 175 years

Members will spend a month of Sundays celebrating the 175th anniversary of First Lutheran Church. Events are planned throughout October and will include a service with hymns led by an 1850s pump organ, a visit by Bishop Daniel Beaudon and guided tours of the church, located at 109 E. Lincoln St. "We're really trying to go all out for this one and create a kind of historical review of the 175 years," said Kurt Ebersole. "Actually it's going to last pretty much for the whole month of October." Ebersole and his wife, Jane, along with Jane Eakin, Joan Swisher, Diane Adler and Miriam Gibson are serving on the history committee, one of the subcommittees for the anniversary celebration. First Lutheran Church has been represented by three different church buildings through the years, said Ebersole, who explained that church was formed after some members broke away from St. John's Lutheran Church, which was formerly located at the corner of South West and West Front streets. The dispute was about the services themselves, he said. "St. John's was St. John's German Lutheran Church, and all the services were in German, so it supported the German population that was here," he said. "But then this church broke off because they thought there should be a church that was an English-speaking church. And so this was actually the first English Evangelical Lutheran Church when it split in 1846, and that's how they ended up building the first building." That first church was a wooden structure located at the northwest corner of West Crawford and South Cory streets — where the Hancock County jail now stands. Lots were later purchased on South Main Street, the site of the current church, and a new, larger building was erected in 1881-82. According to R.C. Brown's "History of Hancock County, Ohio," the church was described as a "substantial, handsome brick and stone edifice of composite architecture, with a large square tower gracing the northwest corner, and possessing a beautiful, massive stained glass window in each end of the main audience room with a large similar one in the west side of the Sunday School room." Several additions allowed the building and congregation to grow until the early 1950s, when an entirely new church was built at the same location. It was decided that parts of the walls, foundation and stained glass windows would be used in the new church. The stained glass was taken out in 1953 and stored in a barn. The architect then incorporated the 1881 stained glass into the new building, which was completed in 1955. Ebersole noted that throughout its history, the church has been associated with one of the national Lutheran Church bodies — currently the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The worldwide organization provided $2.1 billion of outreach in 2020, he said. The committee has also followed the church pipe organ's history as part of its research efforts for the anniversary. "The Lutheran service is very liturgical, and music and hymns are a big part of that liturgical practice, so there's always that need to have some kind of a large or at least serviceable pipe organ," Ebersole said. The first church had a pump reed organ, he said. Organist Miriam Gibson has such an organ that she will be playing during the Oct. 10 services. The second church built in 1881 had an Austin pipe organ, which had 23 ranks, said Ebersole. A rank is a row of pipes that all make the same sound, but at different pitches. "Then when they built the new church, they actually took that Austin organ out of the old church, refurbished it and put it into the new church," he said. The organ was used until the early 1990s, when the current Rodgers Hybrid organ with 97 ranks was installed. At one time, the new organ was the largest of its type on this side of the Mississippi, he said. Guided history tours will be held from 1-3 p.m. Oct. 24, consisting of several stations. Ebersole said a history hall with information, pictures and memorabilia will be set up throughout the celebration. Of special interest will be the stained glass windows that date back to the 1881 church, including the two large windows in the sanctuary. These were designed with seven candles, which support a rose window above. In the center of the rose on the north window is a cross and crown, the symbol of faith. In the south window, an anchor represents hope. The 12 petals of the rose symbolize the apostles, while the candles are representative of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. Longtime church member Frank C. Burk wrote an interpretation of the symbols found in the church in 1954. Burk served as a council member, recording secretary and treasurer, sang in the choir for 40 years and played clarinet in the Sunday school orchestra for 25 years. When the church voted to rebuild, he served on the general building committee. He designed the chancel arch, the chancel window, the main altar and most of the appointments, including symbols. He was also responsible for the placement of the choir loft and chose the positions of the symbolic windows from the former building in the new structure. The small booklet is titled "An Interpretation of the Symbols of First Evangelical Lutheran Church, Findlay, Ohio." Windows in the narthex are also original 1881 stained glass. These windows contain symbols representative of the word and sacraments, according to Burk, including the Holy Bible, which refers to the word of God; a chalice symbolizing the blood of Christ in the Eucharist; a sheaf of grain, which refers to the bounty of God and the body of Christ in Holy Communion; and a font, the symbol of baptism. The choir loft will be part of the tour. "We have 300-400 members. There are people in this church who've never been in the balcony," said Ebersole. "That's where the organ console is, the choir loft. It's where most of the pipes are." Gibson will also give a demonstration of the manuals — the musical keyboard — of the organ. An outside meditation garden was also built specifically for the 175th anniversary, Ebersole said. It is located to the south of the Good News Garden. The sign there reads "On the path of life, always wind your way around Christ as the center." Reformation Sunday will be observed Oct. 31. Wolf: 419-427-8419