Kountze Memorial Lutheran Church - Omaha, NE - This Old Church on Waymarking.com

"Kountze Memorial Lutheran Church is located at 2650 Farnam Street in Midtown Omaha, Nebraska. Organized on December 5, 1858 as Immanuel's Evangelical Lutheran Church, the church is thought to be the first Lutheran congregation organized west of the Missouri River. In the 1920s the church was credited with being the largest Lutheran congregation in the United States.

History

In 1856 Augustus Kountze, then a young banker new to Omaha from Ohio, requested a pastor from the church of his youth. Reverend Henry Kuhn conducted the first Lutheran services in Omaha on November 21, 1858 with 16 founding members. In 1862 the church constructed its first building at 13th and Douglas Streets in Downtown Omaha. The second building was constructed in 1885 at 16th and Harney Streets and was named in memory of Kountze's father, Christian Kountze, after Augustus contributed one half of the construction costs.

The current building was opened in [1906 per church website], and the church continued to grow, adding neighborhood Sunday Schools across Omaha. Many of these "Sunday Schools" were later developed into congregations, including the Lutheran Church of Our Redeemer on North 24th Street, Gethsemane Lutheran Church at 19th and Castelar, Pilgrim Lutheran Church at 42nd and Bancroft Streets, and St. Matthew Lutheran church at 60th and Walnut. In 1916 the church claimed to be the largest Lutheran congregation in the world, with over 2,000 members. During the First World War the pastor of Kountze was embroiled in controversy as he was an outspoken opponent of the war. While many German members supported him, many in the congregation did not support him; however, he was not asked to leave his position.

The General Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States was held at the Church in 1887. In 1940 Kountze hosted the annual convention of the United Lutheran Church of America.

Extensive remodeling and repair work coincided with the 100th anniversary of the building in 2006. Kountze celebrates its 150th anniversary as a congregation in 2008."

-- Source

Date the Church was built, dedicated or cornerstone laid: 05/27/1906 Age of Church building determined by?: Church website If denomination of Church is not part of the name, please provide it here: Lutheran If Church holds a weekly worship service and "all are welcome", please give the day of the week: Sunday Indicate the time that the primary worship service is held. List only one: 9:00 AM Street address of Church: 2650 Farnam Street Omaha, NE USA 68131 Primary website for Church or Historic Church Building: [Web Link] Secondary Website for Church or Historic Church Building: [Web Link] If Church is open to the public, please indicate hours: Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   06/02/2018 kilroy18 visited it