Zion Mennonite Brethren Church (Dinuba, California, USA)

Zion Krimmer Mennonite Brethren Church, ca. 1947-1952.
Creator: Henry J. Wiens (1885-1975)
Digitized by Hiebert Library. Center for Mennonite Brethren Studies.

Zion Krimmer Mennonite Brethren Church, located near Dinuba, Tulare County, California, was organized in March 1911 by several families from South Dakota who came to California under the leadership of Rev. John Z. Kleinsasser and settled on the Clark and Kennedy Ranch near Dinuba. The Zion congregation was the first--and only--Krimmer Mennonite Brethren (KMB) congregation ever established in California. The nearest other KMB congregation was located in Kansas. Kleinsasser served as the first pastor of the congregation, and a meetinghouse was completed in 1911.

The principal occupation of its members in the 1950s was grape farming, with cotton and dairy farming next.

In 1960, the Krimmer Mennonite Brethren Conference merged with the Mennonite Brethren Conference. At that time the Zion congregation became known as the Zion Mennonite Brethren Church.

Zion achieved its highest membership in 1954, with 262 members. Membership dwindled after that time until by the late 1980s the congregation was no longer considered viable. Zion held its last worship service on 28 August 1988.

The following ministers served the church up until 1957: J. Z. Kleinsasser, J. A. Wiens, A. J. Bearg, J. P. Glanzer, J. J. Kleinsasser, D. V. Wiebe, C. F. Plett, and Clarence E. Hofer, who was pastor in 1957. In 1957 the membership was 238.

Bibliography

Fresno Pacific University. "Zion Mennonite Brethren Church." Web. 20 March 2014. http://www.fresno.edu/library/cmbs/archives/cb509.

Archival Records

Center for Mennonite Brethren Studies, Fresno, CA: Record Group CB509.

Additional Information

Denominational Affiliation:

Krimmer Mennonite Brethren Church

Pacific District Conference of M. B. Churches

U. S. Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches

General Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches

Author(s)	Clarence E. Hofer
	Richard D. Thiessen
Date Published	March 2014

Cite This Article

MLA style

Hofer, Clarence E. and Richard D. Thiessen. "Zion Mennonite Brethren Church (Dinuba, California, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. March 2014. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Zion_Mennonite_Brethren_Church_(Dinuba,_California,_USA)&oldid=138954.

APA style

Hofer, Clarence E. and Richard D. Thiessen. (March 2014). Zion Mennonite Brethren Church (Dinuba, California, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Zion_Mennonite_Brethren_Church_(Dinuba,_California,_USA)&oldid=138954.

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Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 1031. All rights reserved.

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