Reed City Church of God in Christ Mennonite Church (Reed City, Michigan, USA)

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The Reed City Church of God in Christ, Mennonite congregation was the first one established in Michigan, USA. It was formed by a group of families who moved from Ontario, Canada, in the late 1860s and early 1870s. They were converted under the preaching of John Holdeman in Ontario during the 1860s and moved here soon afterward to obtain cheap land in an area that was opening up for settlement.

John Holdeman visited the Reed City area in June 1868. He made numerous visits during the 1870s and 1880s, sometimes staying for several weeks.

Names of some of the families moving from Ontario were Buerge, Drescher, Gingerich, Kuepfer, Litwiller, Peters, Wilson, and Yost. Most of these people were children of Amish families who had immigrated to Ontario from Alsace. Some soon moved from Reed City to other congregations, while others moved here from Gratiot County and other areas. Some from this community joined the church. Some of these family names were Diller, Giese, Lipphart, Otto, Siebert, and Wesenberg.

Christian G. Buerge was ordained as a minister at Reed City on 2 April 1908 and was the resident minister for several years. Ministers F. C. Fricke, Peter B. Litwiller, and Charles Peters also spent time ministering to the congregation.

John Buerge built a small church building in the early 1870s. There were 17 members here in 1903. By 1914-1917, most of the members had moved away, many to Gratiot County or Harrison. Henry and Pauline Wilson were the last members living there, and they died in 1936 and 1941 and were buried in the Reed City Cemetery.

Bibliography

Histories of the congregations. 3rd. ed. Moundridge, Kansas: Gospel Publishers, 1999: 365-366.

Original Mennonite Encyclopedia Article

By P. G. Hiebert. Copied by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 264. All rights reserved.

Reed City Church of God in Christ, Mennonite Church, now extinct, located near Reed City, Osceola County, Michigan, was organized in the late 1870s. At first, the small group of about 30 members was ministered to by John Holdeman, Mark Seiler, and Frank Seidner from Ohio. Later, Jacob Litwiller, Dan Buerge, and Peter Yost became their local leaders and held regular Sunday morning worship services. In 1883 some members moved to other congregations. The church was revived under ministers Peter Litwiller and F. C. Fricke, but they also relocated with other congregations. Meetings ceased in 1914.


Author(s) Samuel J Steiner
Date Published January 2021

Cite This Article

MLA style

Steiner, Samuel J. "Reed City Church of God in Christ Mennonite Church (Reed City, Michigan, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. January 2021. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Reed_City_Church_of_God_in_Christ_Mennonite_Church_(Reed_City,_Michigan,_USA)&oldid=169875.

APA style

Steiner, Samuel J. (January 2021). Reed City Church of God in Christ Mennonite Church (Reed City, Michigan, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Reed_City_Church_of_God_in_Christ_Mennonite_Church_(Reed_City,_Michigan,_USA)&oldid=169875.



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