Lutheran Church
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Zion Lutheran Church:
Rev. Don Marxhausen Office: Parking on both Virginia and Riverside Streets. Handicap entrance off of Virginia Street for Sunday Service.
| Historical Highlights of Zion Lutheran Church Presented
on July 6th, 2003 in honor of the Anniversary of Zion Lutheran Church. In the spring of 1896 a group of Swedish immigrant miners and their families in Idaho Springs, met to worship together. They continued their worship in the Swedish Mission Church building at 1215 Colorado Boulevard until they were evicted. At that time the group decided to build their own building along the railroad right of way. The railroad bed ran down what is now Riverside Drive so the church was built on Virginia Street. Choosing Psalm 121 - "I will lift up my eyes to the hills" as their foundation, the group of twenty-three charter members saw their dream become a reality on July 4th, 1896 with the installation of their first pastor, Rev. P.E. Nordgren. Zion Lutheran Church had officially begun. The Zion Lutheran Church building at 1921 Virginia Street was completed in 1897. A mural was painted on the south wall of the sanctuary by a Mr. Cardell, entitled "Christ in Gethsemane". Pastor Nordgren stayed through 1897, followed by the Rev. and Mrs. P.A. Malm serving the congregation from 1898 - 1901. The first confirmation class was presented in 1898 and the building fund was paid off in five years by 1901. In 1903, 100 new adult members joined the church and the Luther League was created. 1904 saw English classes for new arrivals from Sweden and 200 people attended the confirmation service that year. The Hopper House directly east of the church building (on Riverside Drive) was purchased for $350 to begin serving as the parsonage in 1906. By 1910 the largest confirmation class to date was received into the church. Three years later the last class to be confirmed in the Swedish language was accepted. Also, in 1913, Mrs. Claus Anderson gave a square grand piano to the church. It had been used as a payment to her husband for a grubstake in his Idaho Springs grocery store. In 2000 the piano was reportedly the oldest square grand piano in Colorado. It continues to be used weekly. 1913 also recorded the snowstorm of the century with 5'-6" in downtown Idaho Springs. (The next "snowstorm of the century" occurred in the spring of 2003 with 76" or 6'-4" of snowfall in March.) The "Good Shepherd" mural was painted on the south wall over the original painting during redecoration and repainting of the church interior in 1916. The first twenty-five years of Zion Lutheran Church ended in 1921 with a decline in activity that reflected the diminished economy. From 1917 to 1922 pastors would visit from Denver for worship services once or twice a month. From 1923 to 1939, worship services were held in the church basement twice a month. The gathering area in the basement basically consisted of only the area south of a line drawn from the west outside door to the south kitchen door. Despite difficult struggles with membership and finances, the worshipers repaired and redecorated the interior of the church in 1939 and purchased 35 new hymnals. By 1940 a Sunday School had been organized but it was disbanded because Lutheran families had moved away. 1947 was a significant year in Zion's history. This marked the golden anniversary of the congregation and it proved to be the beginning of increased activity in Clear Creek County. In April, Ferd and Polly Michaelis joined the church followed by Robert Keplinger in May. Mrs. R.C. Keplinger became the Superintendent of the Sunday School and taught three weeks of Summer Bible School. Pastor Charles Ramme began serving Zion as pastor in 1947 and served until 1956, the longest serving pastor up to this time. In honoring the dedication and faithfulness of the Swedish immigrants in a new country, several memorial and anniversary gifts were consecrated. These new items in the church were a heating system, an announcement board, collection plates, an alter, a communion set, flags, an altar cross, new window glass and candelabras. In 1952 one of the new members joining the church (in December) was Loraine Kutch. She stills worships at Zion now. This ten-year period of growth was followed by ten years of suspended animation. The pastor serving in 1956 and 1957 also preached in Victor and Gypsum. From 1957 to 1965 the Board of Missions supplied lay and student pastors. The Lutheran Church in America (LCA) began in 1962. In 1966 the LCA Board of American Missions was continuing to support the church, but threatened to cut off their assistance. From 1965 to 1970, Pastor John Pfeiffer led worship service every Sunday with an early service in the Winter Park and late service in Idaho Springs while studying during the week in Denver. Zion's outreach included Georgetown, Silver Plume and Gilpin County. In 1967 an attempt was made to close the church and sell the building to Knottsberry Farm for removal to California. This same year the non-profit Clear Creek Children's Center began operating a preschool in the church basement. In 1970 Pastor John Pfeiffer was officially called to serve. By 1971 Zion was self-supporting. In 1971 a cooperative Sunday School with area churches was established. (1969 saw the waning membership of the Presbyterian and Methodist churches combine to create the United Church.) Pastor Pfeiffer served Zion until 1973. On June 18th, 1972 the 75th anniversary of Zion was celebrated with pulpit and window repairs and undoubtedly, they celebrated the continuing life of Zion. Although the fourth 25-year period at Zion began with a struggle, the church saw the fruit of its resilience as it again flourished into growth. Several ecumenical activities were developed with area churches to assist in the passage to increased activity in the churches. These activities were a continuation of the shared Sunday School established in the early seventies. Also, many upgrades to Zion's property took place with increased membership. In 1974 Pastor Dale Bauer was called to serve until 1979. As the county's juvenile population peaked in the early '70's, a Vacation Bible School with area churches began. The Good Samaritan Fund was established with area churches to assist indigent travelers when stranded in the valley in the late seventies. In the early '80's a confirmation retreat was held at Zion with young people from three churches. In 1982 joint serves with the United Church on the Sundays of Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends were held alternately at the churches. The first fall retreat for the congregation was held at Rainbow Trail Lutheran Camp in 1978. By 1976 a major property renovation was undertaken. The outside staircase from Virginia Street existed only to the first floor west door. An additional staircase was built connecting Virginia Street to Riverside Drive. Over a three-year period from 1976 to 1979, a church member and miner from Georgetown, Slim Green, and pastor Dale Bauer built the rock walls on the south side of the property. The entire area was landscaped to include the parking area. In 1977 a fire in the church caused major smoke and electrical damaged. The plaster throughout the sanctuary was badly cracked. Redecorating and repainting occurred following the fire. Pastor Deirdre Baldwin was called to Zion and installed on Reformation Sunday in 1979. In 1980 and 1981 a building project to renovate and expand the basement was undertaken. Although the foundation existed, there was still dirt and rock fill in the basement behind the furnace area. In 1982 a stained glass window in the narthex was dedicated as a gift from Caroline Jensen, local artist and member of Zion. Its design was based on the founding inspiration of Psalm 121. In 1985 another major construction project began. A pipe organ was built from the donations of Eivind and Caroline Jensen family. They had salvaged the pipes from a Deegan organ built in 1917 in a Yonkers, New York movie house. After transporting and storing the pipes in Colorado, the Jensen's donated 1200 pipes to Zion Lutheran. Dan and Tim Vaughn were hired to build a custom-designed pipe organ for Zion. Four ranks of 200 pipes fill the sanctuary organ chamber with the remaining pipes being used as payment. The pipe organ was completed in December of 1987 and dedicated on Reformation Sunday, October 30, 1988. A second stained glass window was installed above the altar in memory of Kearney Swanson, a young adult who grew up at Zion. "I am the Alpha and the Omega" is the theme of the half-circle window. In 1996 the Zion Lutheran Church congregation celebrated the centennial of the church. Activities were held over a period of several months commemorating the heritage of the founding members and the faithfulness of all the steadfast believers. Church members committed themselves to creating a visual celebration of the church's history in the form of stained glass windows. With the dedication of Caroline Jensen as their mentor, instructor and guide, a group of members of various ages created the basic design and plan under Caroline's tutelage and expertise. Each window is produced by the congregation members with Caroline's constant assistance. The windows celebrate the seasons of the church year. The artwork in each window designed by Caroline is inspired by the text of a church hymn chosen for each season. The two north windows will follow these windows. They will commemorate the history of Zion and the history of stained glass windows memorializes the efforts and faith of the Swedish pioneers and all those people who participated in the church's history. The windows also honor the beginning of a second century of worship at Zion Lutheran Church. As of the 108th birthday of Zion, five of the eight church year windows have been produced. The life and well being of Zion parallels the economic ups and downs of a mining community in Colorado. Gold was discover in Clear Creek County, Colorado in 1859. Railroad construction was taking place by 1877 with the Silver Panic hitting in 1892-1893. Although gold production peaked in Clear Creek County by 1900, the Argo Gold Mill began production in 1903 with 44 mining tunnels in and around Idaho springs. Following the stock market crash of 1929, there was an influx of people coming to the mountains to live in mine shacks and to pan for gold. The price of gold was $34.00 per ounce in 1934. Gold production in the county peaked in 1939, followed by the government closure of the mines. There was a large population decline and the Argo closed in 1943. The World Wars affected the economy of the country as well as the county in 1914-1918 and 1941-1945. The last train in the Clear Creek Valley ran May 4, 1941. Molybdenum mining has also contributed to the rise and fall of the count's economy. The Urad Mine at the south base of Berthoud Pass produced gold and silver and discovered molybdenum in 1913. The mine reopened in the 1950's, developing "moly" production to include the Henderson Mine. The mine shut down in 1982 and reopened in 1984. The economy of Clear Creek County has also been affected by transportation and by its construction. In addition to rails, the roads provided access and in 1927 expansion began with the completion of the road to Echo Lake from Idaho Springs. From 1958 to 1960 construction of I-70 was taking place through Idaho Springs. This required moving or destroying twenty houses, but there was little change in population. This was followed by the construction of the Cabin Creek Hydroelectric Plant on Guanella Pass in 1965. Completion of I-70 on Floyd Hill was taking place in 1971 at the same time the Straight Creek Tunnel construction began. It would be 5-6 years before the completion. These two major projects were happening simultaneously with the construction of the Henderson Mine at Urad. At this time the juvenile population of the county was at its peak. The boom/bust of mining has waned. The Henderson Mine is the major ore producer in the county. Due to a small number of miners operating a technology driven mine, Henderson has a major impact on the tax base rather than creating a population fluctuation as well. Transportation and its residual effects continue to impact the economy. (These article were prepared from history materials prepared through a Zion bible study in 1984, from Clear Creek Courant newspaper articles, and from A History of Clear Creek County.) |
