Elim Lutheran Church celebrates 125 years of service
Elim Lutheran Church as it currently stands.
?Elim's first church, the "old, white church," was begun in 1888 and completed in 1889. It seated 150 and cost $15,000. Behind the main building was a smaller addition with Sunday School rooms and a kitchen, but without water or sewer. Water had to be carried from the parsonage next door.
This image is of Elim Lutheran Church's first pastor, the Rev. Franz August Linder.
Pictured is the interior of Elim Lutheran Church during the Season of Advent. Elim's beautiful stained glass "Christ the King" window was designed by Elim member Grover Smith, who had been a glazier.
This 1918 photo shows the ?Interior of Elim Lutheran's "Old White Church."
This view is of Elim Lutheran Church in 1956.
This picture was taken during the last service in Elim's "Old White Church" in 1948.
OGDEN – It’s been 125 years since the Elim Lutheran Church had its humble beginnings by Swedish Emigrants near the five points area on 2nd Street and Washington Boulevard.
An old, white frame church was soon erected on 23rd Street and Jefferson Avenue in 1889 and then was replaced by a red brick church in 1948. That church still stands now, but has had some additions and some renovations.
The congregation, made up of about 150 to 200 attendees, has been celebrating the anniversary of the church all year.
David Thomas, chairman of the 125th Anniversary Celebration, said the members decided to make the celebrations last one year because of the process and beginnings of the church from 1888 to 1889.
Church Pastor DanaLee Simon said it’s been a great year and everything is leading up to a large banquet and special meeting to be held Oct. 26. The next event also is of great significance.
Sunday, Sept. 14, just after the 10 a.m. church services, the cornerstone will be unlocked and a time capsule will be opened. Thomas is excited to see what is in the capsule, which was placed there in 1963.
“We really don’t know what will be there. There may be more history and it may go back further than 1963. We hope so,” Thomas said.
The church’s written history says there are some historical documents there and that’s all, so Thomas said it will be interesting to find out what is there.
The church has a rich history of hard work and community service, both Thomas and Simon said. In some history of the church yet to be published, there is discussion about how members cleaned bricks for the red brick church at the Harrisville brickyard. The history states that for every two bricks cleaned, one was donated for the church.
The history says they also salvaged timbers for Elim’s walls from an old prisoner of ward barracks at Defense Depot Ogden.
Simon has enjoyed all of the celebrations, but has especially enjoyed skits that members have performed throughout the year sharing the church’s history. She talked of one skit where some were in heaven greeting members that have died and the different reunions and how they view how Elim is today. “It has been super fun and so funny,” Simon said.
Another great part of the year has been to see how people have connected back to Elim, they said.
“Before this year, we have not had many leaders or previous pastors (visit) that are still alive,” Simon said. “This year they have been coming out of the woodwork,” she said, regarding families that have a connection to Elim.
Simon has loved getting to know some families that have a link to Elim and have a love for the church for one reason or another.
Each month there has been a historical write up in the church’s newsletter that has also been enjoyable, she said. Simon thinks it is important to look at their church’s foundation and traditions.
“We can figure out how to use it to figure out who we are now and how we share the good news of God’s grace,” Simon said. “We can look at who these people are that allowed us to be who we are now,” she added.
Elim Lutheran Church is located at 575 23rd Street in Ogden. For more information on the October celebration, visit the website at www.elimlutheran.org or call Thomas at 801-394-5543.
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