Reflections on the Hundred Twenty-Fifth Anniversary of
First Lutheran Church
—Taken from an address given by John Darrow, on Sunday, March 19, 2006 at First Lutheran Church of the Reformation.
One hundred twenty-five years ago on March 15, 1881, twenty-eight
Swedish immigrants established the Swedish Evangelical “Maria” Church in
New Britain.
Initially services were held in homes, in the basement of the
Methodist Church, the Chapel of First Congregational Church, and in the
Elihu Burritt Chapel on Cherry St.
Membership dues were charged the parishioners. Men paid 25 cents a
month and women 15 cents. To Signe Swanson, our Church Historian for
many years, I owe thanks for the following Treasurer’s Report for the
first year—1881.
| Income for the year: |
$110.27 |
|
| Expenditures: |
$88.09 |
which included $70.00 for the Pastor’s salary and $14.00 for rental of hall or church |
| |
$0.35 |
for one pint wine for Communion |
| |
$3.75 |
for miscellaneous expenses |
| Balance as of Jan. 1, 1882: | $22.18 | |
 From
1883 to 1885 work was begun on a church building. This wooden structure
was located at the corner of Elm and Chestnut Streets and was formally
dedicated in March of 1885. The year 1924 was the year we became known
as the First Lutheran Church of New Britain.Whatever happened to the
twenty-eight? Some moved away. In fact one or two returned to Sweden.
Some died very early in their lives. And the rest settled in New
Britain.
Only one of the founders, Otto Bengtson, lived to celebrate the 50th
anniversary of the church in 1931. It was written of him that “for 50
years he has faithfully taken part in the struggles and conquests of his
beloved church and has served in a number of official positions, such
as treasurer and as a member of the building committee.
| Reflections on the Hundredth Anniversary of Reformation
Lutheran Church
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—Taken form an address by John Darrow, given Sunday, February 19, 2006 at First Lutheran Church of the Reformation.
One hundred years ago on February 11, 1906 forty-two individuals
officially organized the Reformation Lutheran Church in New Britain. It
was the desire and wish of these 42 charter members to establish an
English-speaking Lutheran Church. A woman, Mrs. Edward Senf, played a
most significant role in bringing an English-speaking Lutheran Church to
our community—and that was 14 years before women gained the right to
vote in this country.
 The
first place of worship was at the YMCA Hall on Court Street. The
rent—$5.00 each Sunday for a morning service and Sunday School.
The next major step in the history of Reformation Church occurred
near the end of Pastor Schaefer’s ministry when the decision was made to
purchase property of Stanley Street. Groundbreaking took place on
August 15, 1954 under the leadership of The Reverend Stanley H. Knull
who came to Reformation in January 1953. In July 1955 Pastor Knull
presided over the first service held in the new building. In 1966 Pastor
Knull accepted a call a congregation in new York and was succeeded by
The Reverend Conrad L. Bergendoff who served until 1972.
Marjorie Senf, a daughter of two charter members, wrote a history of
Reformation Church. This written history appears in A Century of
Achievement in Faith which was published at the 100th anniversary of
First Lutheran and the 75th anniversary of Reformation. She said:
After Pastor Bergendoff left, the question of the future of
Reformation was uppermost in the thoughts of our members. It was a
remarkable congregation, the members bound closely by their years
together. We had weathered many storms, our faith in God and in one
another keeping us together. But things change, even in churches, and
the realization came that we could no longer continue as a separate
entity.
In 1974 it was decided to merge with First Lutheran Church. Thus First Lutheran Church of the Reformation was born.
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