The Cimarron Church of God in Christ, Mennonite congregation south of Cimarron, Kansas, USA was established in 1914. The congregation started when families first settled northeast of Cimarron. Minister Peter A. Friesen of Montezuma, Kansas conducted early worship services for the community. Later a schoolhouse, one mile north and five miles east of Cimarron, was used, and later purchased in 1923.

The 1930s were very difficult for the Cimarron congregation as leadership was sometimes intermittent and dust storms made meeting for worship difficult. Often the church was filled with dust on Sunday even though it had been cleaned on Saturday. The furnace was also inadequate, leading the members to sometimes meet in homes. After Sam Koehn moved to the community, the congregation decided to move the schoolhouse building to the church's present location, as most members now lived south of Cimarron. It was dedicated at the new location on 29 October 1944.

The congregation constructed a new church in 1960 and dedicated it on 22 January 1961. A large addition was added in 1978, with another addition in 1990.

The congregation began the Cimarron Christian School in 1979 in the church's Sunday school rooms. A separate school building opened in January 1999. Originally teachers lived in a mobile home, but it was destroyed by a tornado on 4 July 1987. A more permanent teacherage was completed by January 1988.

In 2020 the congregation was part of the Church of God in Christ, Mennonite. The ministers were Keith Ensz and Karlin Koehn.

Bibliography

Author(s)	Samuel J Steiner
Date Published	January 2021

Church of God in Christ, Mennonite. Yearbook (1996-2020).

Histories of the congregations. 3rd. ed. Moundridge, Kansas: Gospel Publishers, 1999: 260-263.

Additional Information

Address: 16002 KS-23, Cimarron, Kansas 67835

Phone: 620-855-3433

Website:

Denominational Affiliations:

Church of God in Christ, Mennonite

Ordained Pastors at the Cimarron Church of God in Christ, Mennonite Church

Name	Years of Service
Peter A. Friesen (Nonresident)	1914-1915
Henry A. Koehn (1862-1932)	1915-1920s
John A. Koehn (1885-1966)	1929-1932
Ben T. Koehn (1906-1981)	1933-1938
Reuben J. Koehn (1907-1995)	1935-1936
Samuel L. Fricke (1902-1947)	1943-1947
Vernon Giesbrecht (1923-2011)	1948-1975 1980-2001
Samuel Jantzen (1921-1997)	1952-1960
Wilbur L. Koehn (1929-2019)	1958-1994 2000-2008
Eli Nightingale (1928-2015)	1960-1976
Curt Ensz (1935-2012)	1968-1999 2006-2010
Dallas Koehn	1992-1996 1998-2019
Keith Ensz	1994-present
Karlin Koehn	2019-present

Membership at Cimarron Church of God in Christ, Mennonite Church

Year	Membership
1937?	13
1953	72
1995	98
2000	106
2010	107
2020	113

Original Mennonite Encyclopedia Article

The Cimarron Church of God in Christ, Mennonite Church is located 1 1/4 miles south of Cimarron, Gray County, Kansas. It was organized in 1914. The first meetings were held in homes conducted by Peter A. Friesen, and later in a schoolhouse, with Henry A. Koehn as pastor. The schoolhouse was purchased in 1923 north and west of Cimarron. Sunday school was first organized in January 1929.

Later Reuben J. Koehn and Ben T. Koehn were ordained to the ministry and Jake Wadel and Henry Redger as deacons. The Depression years were very difficult, and many members moved away because of drought. Membership dropped as low as 13. The old school building was in poor condition, and sometimes dust storms forced the congregation to meet in homes. The building was moved to the present location and remodeled in 1944; it was dedicated 29 October 1944.

Sam L. Fricke moved to the community in 1943 and served as pastor until his death in 1947, after which H. J. Mininger served for a while. It had a Sunday-school enrollment of 68 and a membership of 72 in 1953. The congregation was active in supporting missions, Mennonite Central Committee, and relief. It had an active sewing circle.

Cite This Article

MLA style

Steiner, Samuel J. "Cimarron Church of God in Christ Mennonite (Cimarron, Kansas, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. January 2021. Web. 16 Feb 2025. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Cimarron_Church_of_God_in_Christ_Mennonite_(Cimarron,_Kansas,_USA)&oldid=169731.

APA style

Steiner, Samuel J. (January 2021). Cimarron Church of God in Christ Mennonite (Cimarron, Kansas, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 February 2025, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Cimarron_Church_of_God_in_Christ_Mennonite_(Cimarron,_Kansas,_USA)&oldid=169731.

Cimarron Church of God in Christ Mennonite (Cimarron, Kansas, USA)

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