Last September [2025]; St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church celebrated its 150th Anniversary. Every Wednesday we are going to post one of the articles from the time of our Anniversary. These were created at the direction of the St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church 150th Anniversary Committee.

This month’s brief history of St. Peter’s beginnings follows the years from 1888-1909

The next spiritual leader Florida called was Pastor William Schust (1888-1891) of Lockwood, Missouri. He was installed by Pastor William L. Fischer of Napoleon on the 25th Sunday after Trinity, 1888. But soon after this, the congregation at Holgate experienced a vacancy, and asked Pastor Schust to also serve their needs. So the agreement was reached between the two neighboring congregations that they be served jointly by the same pastor. And since the pastor was to teach religious school at Holgate, he took up his residence in the parsonage there. Up to that time Florida had not acquired a minister’s home. The first resident pastor boarded with parish families. However, the majority of the Florida membership preferred to have their pastor in their own midst, so the congregation decided to release Pastor Schust to Holgate altogether and to join with the sister congregation in North Richland Township in calling a new pastor.

This call was submitted to Candidate Ernest Gottlieb Juengel (1891-1893) of the seminary at St. Louis. This young man was ordained and installed at Florida on the 17th Sunday after Trinity, 1891, by his father, the Reverend H. Juengel. But his stay proved to be of short duration as in 1893 he accepted a call to serve a church in Cleveland.

During the following vacancy of seven months. Pastor Herman Diemer of the South Ridge congregation supplied the needs of Florida to the best of his time and ability. Three times Florida called in vain. Then Candidate Henry Kasper Rottmann (1894-1908) from the seminary at Springfield, Illinois was called successfully and Pastor Diemer ordained and installed him on July 29, 1894. [As we have discussed: The Theological Seminary which is now at Fort Wayne was at Springfield IL at the time].

Under Pastor Rottmann’s leadership of fifteen years, the Florida congregation flourished and progressed visibly. It was during this time that the church building was enlarged and the first parsonage erected and other improvements were made. The parochial report of the year 1900 read: Souls: 183; communicants 97; voting members 23; Summer school pupils: 25; baptisms: 13; confirmation 7: marriages 2; burials 1.

Re-printing excerpt from “Word and Sacraments 100 Years September 13, 1875 - September 13, 1975” - Centennial Anniversary Booklet