Wellman Mennonite Church (Wellman, Iowa, USA)
Source: Mennonite Community Photograph Collection, The Congregation (HM4-134 Box 1 photo 010.6-2).
Mennonite Church USA Archives, Goshen, Indiana.
In the summer of 1906, the West Union congregation opened a Sunday school in the Daytonville schoolhouse. Daytonville was a small village north of Wellman, Iowa. Soon after, C. Z. Yoder of Ohio led evangelistic meetings in Daytonville, which resulted in 11 new members. Daytonville Mennonite Church began as a mission to non-Mennonites, but by 1922 Amish Mennonite families began to move to the community, transforming it into a more traditional Mennonite congregation.
In 1911 the Wright County Amish Mennonites dismantled their church building and rebuilt it in Daytonville; it was dedicated on 18 June. West Union continued to hold services there until May 1935, when the congregation became independent with its own organization. In 1940, when its building became too small, the congregation erected a new brick building in Wellman, at which time it became the Wellman Mennonite Church. It dedicated the new facility on 10 November 1940. The congregation dedicated a major addition in 1975.
In 1948, the Wellman congregation launched an outreach in Daytonville, beginning with Summer Bible School and Sunday school. After a former Methodist church was purchased and moved to Daytonville, a new Daytonville Mennonite Church was launched.
As part of the realignment of the Mennonite Church (MC) and General Conference Mennonite Church into Mennonite Church USA, Wellman Mennonite was among the congregations that joined the new Central Plains Mennonite Conference in 2000.
In 2023 the congregation was part of the Central Plains Conference of Mennonite Church USA.
Bibliography
"The church building at Daytonville,..." Gospel Herald 4, no. 13 (29 June 1911): 200.
"The Daytonville, Iowa congregation has made arrangements...." Gospel Herald 33, no. 6 (9 May 1940): 136.
"The Daytonville, Iowa, congregation has been organized...." Gospel Herald 28, no. 13 (27 June 1935): 280.
Gingerich, Melvin. The Mennonites in Iowa. Iowa City, Iowa: State Historical Society of Iowa, 1939: 322.
"Wellman, Iowa." Gospel Herald 33, no. 34 (21 November 1940): 733, 736.
Yoder, Holly Blosser. The same spirit: History of Iowa-Nebraska Mennonites. Freeman, S.D.: Central Plains Mennonite Conference, 2003: 69-70, 172-174, 276.
Additional Information
Address: 1215 8th Avenue, Wellman, Iowa 52356
Phone: 319-646-2532
Website: https://www.facebook.com/wellmanmennonitechurch/
Denominational Affiliations: Central Plains Mennonite Conference
Pastoral Leaders at Wellman Mennonite Church
| Name | Years of Service |
|---|---|
| Visiting and West Union ministers |
1906-1935 |
| William S. "W. S." Guengerich (1877-1967) | 1935-1949? |
| Edward Diener (1892-1953) | 1936-1948 1950-1953 |
| George S. Miller (1887-1978) | 1939?-1961? |
| Max Yoder (1920-1993) | 1948-1965 |
| Gideon G. Yoder (1908-1971) | 1965?-1967 |
| Ronald L. Kennel | 1967-1987 |
| Stanley Weaver (Interim) | 1987-1988 |
| Daniel R. Johnston | 1989-1995 |
| Herbert L. Yoder (1929-2021)(Interim) | 1995-1996 |
| Michael Klassen | 1997-2000? |
| Donald Patterson (Interim) | 2001? |
| Robert L. Hartzler (1936-2022)(Interim) | 2002-2003? |
| Marvin Dean Hostetler (1955-2012) | 2003-2010 |
| George O'Reilly (Interim) | 2010 |
| Nathan P. Ramer | 2011-2019 |
| J. Michael Loss (Interim) | 2020-2021 |
| David Heusinkveld | 2021- |
Membership at Wellman Mennonite Church
| Year | Membership |
|---|---|
| 1935 | 87 |
| 1940 | 188 |
| 1950 | 318 |
| 1960 | 320 |
| 1970 | 283 |
| 1980 | 282 |
| 1990 | 268 |
| 2000 | 254 |
| 2009 | 208 |
| 2020 | 86 |
Original Mennonite Encyclopedia Article
By George S. Miller. Copied by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, pp. 914-915. All rights reserved.
Wellman Mennonite Church (Mennonite Church), formerly called the Daytonville Mission, located in Wellman, Iowa, began in 1906 as a Sunday school in Daytonville Schoolhouse conducted by members of West Union congregation. The meetinghouse was acquired in 1911. W. S. Guengerich was first resident minister, ordained in 1925, followed by Edward Diener in 1926. The congregation was organized 6 May 1935. A new church with seating capacity of 650 at the north edge of Wellman was dedicated 10 November 1940.
The ministers in 1957 were George S. Miller and J. Max Yoder; the bishop was Simon Gingerich. The membership was 335.
| Author(s) | Samuel J Steiner |
|---|---|
| Date Published | July 2023 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Steiner, Samuel J. "Wellman Mennonite Church (Wellman, Iowa, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. July 2023. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Wellman_Mennonite_Church_(Wellman,_Iowa,_USA)&oldid=176289.
APA style
Steiner, Samuel J. (July 2023). Wellman Mennonite Church (Wellman, Iowa, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Wellman_Mennonite_Church_(Wellman,_Iowa,_USA)&oldid=176289.
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