St. Andrew's Chorus. (Photo by Layn Mudder)

St Andrew's preservation
celebrates German heritage

This story is a condensed version of the original article that appeared in the September 2011 issue of North Dakota LIVING Magazine. You can receive North Dakota LIVING for only $14.50 per year. Subscribe by clicking on the advertisement above.

by Wendy Fix

Scattered across the prairies and rolling plains of North Dakota, the tall steeples of small country churches interrupt the horizon. These houses of worship – with doors long closed – remain to tell the story of their people’s heritage, and boast architecture influenced by the culture of their founders.

On a plot of prairie southwest of Wishek, St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church stands to proclaim the strong heritage of its original 15 founding families, those who came after, and all their descendants. Founded in 1893 by Germans from Russia who immigrated to Dakota Territory, the congregation of St. Andrew’s first met in a modest sandstone building, which still remains. In 1906, the permanent church building was erected near the stone structure, and regular services continued there until just a decade ago.

For generations, St. Andrew’s was a primary meeting place for the Germans from Russia who homesteaded in rural Wishek and surrounding areas. Most were large farm families who clung to their rich German heritage. Services at St. Andrew’s were traditional, with women and children seated at the left and men on the right, and hymns were sung in their native German.

Today, a core group of former members of St. Andrew’s continues to pull together in true German form to attend to the restoration needs of the church. In July, the St. Andrew’s Preservation Committee hosted a fund-raising event and successfully raised enough money to replace the roof of the 1906 structure.

Future plans are in place for ongoing preservation. Just as many other country churches, St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church went through stages prior to its inevitable closing, including merging with other area churches and sharing pastors. “It was hard to close the doors,” Carol says, “but we kept them open as long as we could. The important thing now is to preserve and pass on this part of our heritage to future generations.”

Wendy Fix is a freelance writer and owner of Prairie Ink Writing Services. She and her husband, Mike, are raising their five children in Bismarck.