Swiss Mennonite Church (Alsen, North Dakota, USA)
In 1898, ten families, mostly from the Salem-Zion Mennonite Church in South Dakota, settled near Starkweather, North Dakota. In 1899 they organized a Sunday school. In 1904, their former pastor in South Dakota, Christian Kauffman, helped them to organize the Swiss Mennonite Church. They met in homes, holding Sunday school and reading a sermon from a book. Occasionally visiting ministers would serve.
In 1910-1911, some of the families moved to Alsen. They then held services in the town hall, then in the rear of a bank building. Later a rural schoolhouse was moved to town and converted to a church. In 1919 the congregation constructed a church at the present location and added a parsonage a year later. Remodeling has occurred numerous times. It added Sunday school rooms, an enlarged kitchen, and restrooms in 1979. Swiss Mennonite became part of the Northern District of the General Conference Mennonite Church.
As part of the realignment of the Mennonite Church (MC) and General Conference Mennonite Church into Mennonite Church USA, Swiss Mennonite was among the congregations that joined the new Central Plains Mennonite Conference in 2000.
In 2007 the congregation transferred from the Central Plains Mennonite Conference to the North Central Conference of the Mennonite Church.
After the North Central Conference withdrew from Mennonite Church USA in 2015 and dissolved in 2017, Swiss Mennonite Church appeared to become an independent Mennonite congregation.
Bibliography
Schmidt, Diena, ed. The Northern District Conference of the General Conference Mennonite Church 1891-1991. Freeman, S.D.: The Conference, 1991: 127-129.
Thomas, Everett J. "Congregations Switch Membership." The Mennonite (1 September 2013). http://www.themennonite.org/issues/16-9/articles/Congregations_switch_membership
Additional Information
Address: 301 Elm St, Alsen, North Dakota 58311
Phone: 701-682-5210
Website:
Denominational Affiliations: Northern District Conference (Until 2000)
Central Plains Mennonite Conference (2000-2007)
Northern District of the Mennonite Church (2007-2017)
General Conference Mennonite Church (Until 2001)
Mennonite Church USA (2001-2017)
Pastoral Leaders at Swiss Mennonite Church
| Name | Years of Service |
|---|---|
| Lay leadership | 1904-1911 |
| Martin Fast (1868-1931) | 1911-1915 |
| Visiting ministers | 1915-1917 |
| Nickolai F. "N. F." Toews (1857-1935) | 1917-1926 |
| Edward Duerksen (1892-1979) | 1926-1940 |
| Albert J. Kleinsasser (1911-2006) | 1941-1943 |
| Waldo J. Flickinger (1909-2001) | 1943-1947 |
| Abraham Unruh | 1947-1948 |
| Helmuth F. Ortmann (Interim) (1895-1972) | 1948-1949 1959-1960 |
| Daniel G. Regier (1923-2007) | 1949-1955 |
| LeRoy Schroeder (Interim) (1930-1962) | 1955 |
| Leonard W. Harder (1913-1990) | 1955-1959 |
| Herbert M. Dalke (1918-2012) | 1960-1963 |
| Frank H. Ewert (1915-1996) | 1963-1968 1985-1986 |
| Wilbur Schmidt | 1968-1970 |
| Kenneth Heppner | 1970-1979 |
| Keith Jeske | 1979-1985 |
| E. J. Pike | 1986-1990 |
| Les Dick (Interim) | 1990-1992 |
| Mark Flaten | 1993-1998? |
| Richard Cotton | 1999 |
| Rick Wadholm Jr. | 1999-2002 |
| Vergil Moos | 2003?-? |
Swiss Mennonite Church Membership
| Year | Members |
|---|---|
| 1904 | 29 |
| 1930 | 108 |
| 1940 | 156 |
| 1950 | 74 |
| 1960 | 86 |
| 1970 | 91 |
| 1980 | 101 |
| 1990 | 92 |
| 2000 | 21 |
| 2009 | 21 |
Original Mennonite Encyclopedia Article
By Daniel G. Regier. Copied by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 671. All rights reserved.
Swiss Mennonite Church (General Conference Mennonite) was organized 2 December 1904, near Starkweather, North Dakota, with Christian Kauffman in charge. About 1910, when a number of families moved, the address of the church was changed to Alsen, North Dakota. The first meetings were then held in the Town Hall. The present meetinghouse was dedicated on 13 September 1919, and is located in Alsen. This church is a member of the Northern District. The membership in 1957 was 79, with Leonard Harder as pastor.
| Author(s) | Samuel J Steiner |
|---|---|
| Date Published | September 2023 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Steiner, Samuel J. "Swiss Mennonite Church (Alsen, North Dakota, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. September 2023. Web. 21 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Swiss_Mennonite_Church_(Alsen,_North_Dakota,_USA)&oldid=177490.
APA style
Steiner, Samuel J. (September 2023). Swiss Mennonite Church (Alsen, North Dakota, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 21 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Swiss_Mennonite_Church_(Alsen,_North_Dakota,_USA)&oldid=177490.
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