History of St. John's Lutheran Church

St. John's

Lutheran Church

St. Stephen Lutheran Church is the oldest Lutheran congregation in Syracuse and can trace its history back more than 150 years, to 1838. It was the Barmer Mission Society that commissioned Pastor John Mulhauser to come to Syracuse in 1838. Soon thereafter, Pastor George Kempe was leading worship. By 1841, the first building was constructed for $702 on the southeast corner of Butternut Street and Prospect Avenue. At this point St. John's Lutheran Church was three years old.

Discord developed in this new congregation because of the varied traditions of its members. In 1843, ten families left St. John's and formed another of the St. Stephen predecessor congregations, St. Peter's Lutheran Church. These two congregations prospered until another disagreement struck St. John's. This resulted in the formation of a third Lutheran church out of the original St. John's congregation, Zion Lutheran Church.

Troubles were many in these early years as all three congregations, St. John's, St. Peter's, and Zion, saw their buildings burn to the ground in the short span of eleven years (1856-1867). Strong pastoral leadership helped strengthen these congregations throughout the rest of the nineteenth century. All three experienced growth and change during these years.

All five of the congregations, St. John's, St. Peter's, Zion, Mount Tabor, and Redeemer, were characterized by growth during the first few decades of the twentieth century. Each congregation expanded, renovated, or purchased property during this period.

The history of the northside of Syracuse had a strong impact on the lives of these five Lutheran congregations during the next fifty years. The German immigration had ceased, and the ethnic background of the new residents on the northside was no longer Lutheran. Many who stayed on the northside saw their families move out to the suburbs and strengthen the various Lutheran congregations throughout Onondaga County.

In the mid-1940's, the three Lutheran churches which were all at the corner of Butternut Street and Prospect Avenue, St. John's, St. Peter's, and Zion, discussed the possibility of merger. After much discussion and debate, a merger of St. John's and St. Peter's was accomplished in 1945. The new congregation was called St. John's and St. Peter's Lutheran Church.

Chronological and Pictoral History of the Pastors of St. John's Lutheran Church.