EAST SVEADAHL HISTORY
The congregation had its beginning through immigrants who arrived from these areas in Sweden - Vastergotland, Smaland, and Skane - in the years of 1868 and 1869. They came to the prairies poor in worldly goods, but they were rich in physical endurance, faith in the future, and trust in God. Besides a few simple articles of clothing, a Bible, and a hymnbook were usually the only other articles found in their knapsacks.
After they got here, where no church was to be found, being good Lutherans, they felt the need for one. They were glad when a Lutheran pastor occasionally came and preached the Word of God to them. At a service of this kind held in the home of Sven Nelson on August 5, 1870, the congregation was organized calling itself Svea Dahl. They adopted a constitution, joined the Augustana Synod, elected deacons, and trustees.
In the summer of 1871, the charter members were given ten acres of land by the Northwestern Railroad company as a location for a church. At the same time thirty additional acres were bought from the same company for about $6.50 per acre. Receipts for the year 1871 were $37.25 and expenses $36.76, of which $32.76 was applied to the purchase of the land.
At a meeting May 18, 1872, the congregation decided to build their church at the southeast corner of section 21, township 107, range 32, on the condition that the settlers on the west side of the North Branch River buy ten acres of land on which to build a church and a parsonage; and that the entire membership contribute to the payments on the original plot part of which was to be used for a burial place for the members of the church; and that the whole congregation build roads and bridges leading to the church. This resolution passed because many members wanted the church built two miles west of the land the church already owned. Each family was to contribute $10 toward the building of the church.
Penalties were in place for those who didn’t comply!
On September 1, 1872, a committee was elected to build a church. It was soon apparent that these members were divided as to the location of the church. Although the church site had been decided, certain persons took it upon themselves to build the church on the land that was donated by the railroad company instead of the corner of section 21 as had been decided on May 18, 1872. Here’s what was said October 7, 1873 “… Being that members from the eastern part of the congregation are opposed to the resolution of the congregation, the committee dared to disregard the resolution and build the church on the old location. The church is 26 feet wide and 36 feet long. The cost is $601.00. The committee humbly petitions the congregation to approve this act and that the committee be dissolved.” It didn’t take long for this congregation to be divided!
At an April 21, 1873 meeting it was recorded: “As the west part of the congregation intend to organize their own congregation by the name of West Svea Dahl, the word East shall be added to Svea Dahl, so the eastern part will be called East Svea Dahl.”
Through these early years many pastors were called to serve. In 1870 Michael Sandell was called to visit the congregation at Svea Dahl once a month. By 1873 Pastor N.J. Brink was called as preacher with a salary of $350.00 ($175 from East and West Svea Dahl), but he had to furnish his own home.
By January of 1875 a new parish was established including East Svea Dahl, West Svea Dahl, Kansas Lake, and Little Cottonwood (Comfrey); the pastor’s salary was to be $560.00. Preachers in those early days didn’t remain with a congregation for very long.
This was a hard time for the pioneers – they had little homesteads, their crops were ruined year after year by the hoards of grasshoppers, men had to leave their homes to find work – many on the railroads while their wives cared for their farms as best they could, and without roads, people had to travel over the prairie was best they could. Some gave up their “homesteads”, but most stayed hoping that life would improve.
In August of 1875, H.P. Quist, a new ordained minister, accepted the call to serve the four- church parish. They provided the pastor with a parsonage, and he began to labor in this large field. Pastor Quist traveled night and day between the places where he preached and from home to home encouraging the members to trust in God and look forward for better times. He waited for his salary to the end of the year and sometimes longer! By 1879, the parish was again looking for a new pastor.
Tragedy struck in the summer of 1879 when both the East and West churches were demolished by a severe windstorm. East decided immediately to rebuild – a considerably smaller church (26 feet long, 18 feet wide, and 12 feet high); add a 10x12 addition to the parsonage and to plaster two rooms.
During this time and before the next pastor arrived, attempts were made to unite East and West.
In April of 1879 it was decided that the congregations should unite and that the new church should be built in the geographical center of the congregation, the center of section 21, and that nothing should be built for at least three years which would give ample time to consider or forget the agreement. Nothing came of this attempt, and this is the last time any attempt at union was heard of.
In January of 1883, with a deed to the land and without debt, it was decided to build a new church provided $1,600.00 could be raised. The new church, built on the site of the old church, was 40 feet long, 32 feet wide, 14 feet high with a sacristy 16x20 on the west gable of the church. The church was dedicated on November 18, 1883, but the 1208-pound bell wasn’t bought until 1889. That’s when the Ladies’ Aid presented the congregation with the organ.
Pastor P.J. Eckman had been called in 1880 to serve the four congregations. He is remembered as a “a man who couldn’t be moved a hair’s breath from what he thought was right.” He practiced a very strict church discipline. As the memberships in the four churches increased, the labor for this pastor also increased. Because of this it was decided in January of 1885 to divide the parish so that East Sveadahl, Kansas Lake, and the newly organized congregation at St. James would make up one parish and West Sveadahl and Little Cottonwood another. Pastor Eckman resigned from these two churches. Now East Sveadahl and St. James – mother and daughter – became a new parish which lasted thirty years.
Pastors move on and in 1890 Pastor Eckman resigned and was called to pastor the Kansas Lake church which had requested that the union between and East and Kansas Lake be dissolved. East bought from Pastor Eckman the barn, granary, and other items he had provided; plus, an acre of Pastor Eckman’s land was added to the southeast corner of the land they already owned.
By 1895 the congregation had the largest membership in its history. Neither before nor after did it have so many children. It had 315 communicants and 204 children.
Now a new church was needed – this one was to be 60 feet by 40 feet with a basement! A sum of $6,000.00 was pledged and raised, but because of bad weather and roads, the church couldn’t be built until the spring of 1904. By this time more money was needed -- $2,500.00 was raised in a short time. The church was completed for $10,000.00 without debt! “There was general joy and satisfaction when the beautiful church was completed.”
Back in the summer of 1886, a 28x22x14 foot high parsonage was built with help from a Kansas Lake loan. By 1909 repairs needed to be made to the parsonage. It was decided that a new parsonage would be more practical than trying to repair the old. The money was raised and “Beside our beautiful church now stands our new, graceful, and practical parsonage. It shows what can be done by united action.” This was stated by Pastor A.T. Lundholm who was called after Pastors Eckman and L.J. Fihn left.
Improvements continued to be made – a garage was built for $200.00 in 1915 by the Luther League and a barn was built for $1,000.00 in 1916 – now there was a complete set of buildings debt free. A Bennett organ for the church ($3,350.00) was purchased by the Luther League, a new altar ($1,010.00) was donated by the Dorcas Society, and the Ladies’ Aid paid $625.00 to have a Chicago firm decorate the church. An additional $10,000.00 was spent for repairs to the foundation, a new stairway, a new roof, and extensive repairs on the tower. It wasn’t until 1926 that electric lights were installed in the church and parsonage – a truly great improvement over the old gas lights. The Ladies’ Aid and Dorcas Society paid $1,000.00 for the installation. In 1930 the kitchen was remodeled, a new oil burning furnace with an electric blower was installed, and new dishes for the kitchen were bought by the Ladies’ Aid.
Change was in the wind by 1916 when the matter of dividing the parish arose in earnest for a while due to the increase in numbers in the churches. Nothing was done for a time – until 1920 when a petition and call was received from West Sveadahl. Their church council respectfully asked to unite with the East Sveadahl congregation to form one parish and find a pastor to take charge as soon as possible. They agreed to have the parsonage stay at East Sveadahl and pay $1000.00 per year for one- half of the service of the pastor. They called Pastor T.A. Conrad to be pastor for the congregation of West Sveadahl.
The East congregation met, and a resolution was unanimously adopted to present a petition to the St. James congregation dissolving the East Sveadahl and St. James Parish; and if that happened, East would unite with West effective January 1, 1921. It was adopted.
Pastor Conrad resigned from the St. James congregation and began his work with East and West Sveadahl where he ministered until 1923. His pastorate consisted of about 500 members living in the rural area of the churches. It was during his ministry that it was decided to have more services in the English language. All forenoon services were in Swedish, and the afternoon services were in English.
A number of pastors served this congregation – most of them were paid $1,000.00, had free use of the parsonage, and a month’s vacation.
On June 1, 1943, Pastor W. A. Bloom began what was to be the longest service of any pastor in the history of the church. He resigned effective July 1, 1965 after serving this congregation for 22 years.
For the first time all services were conducted in the English language, thus eliminating the Swedish service held on every third Sunday of the month. In 1945 Swedish was also eliminated from the official name of the church – it went from the Swedish Evangelical Lutheran East Sveadahl Congregation to the East Sveadahl Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Forty-two young men and two women from the congregation answered the call to serve during World War II. The members of the congregation participated in the war fund, bond issues, and Red Cross drives during the War.
East Sveadahl celebrated its 75thanniversary on August 3-5, 1945. In preparing for the Diamond Jubilee, the congregation considered the existing war problems, soldiers on the battle fronts, labor problems at home, and the many shortages and restrictions being enforced, and decided to have a very simple program honoring the veterans of war and the founders and the builders of the church. It was decided to purchase, by voluntary memorial contributions, stained glass windows honoring the church members in the armed forces of World Wars I and II and memorialize former pioneer members, pastors, and builders of the congregation. The windows, costing $5,000.00, were of the Grisalle design with six figure medallions and nineteen symbols. The windows were installed by the Gaytee Art Glass Company, Minneapolis. They were dedicated on Thanksgiving Day, November 22, 1945. The south transept windows honor the Veterans while the north windows honor the memory of the Founders and Builders of the congregation.
Through the years, the congregation has dedicated itself to providing quality spiritual care and guidance to all members of East Sveadahl. Through the years, the congregation has worked hard and diligently to keep the church and parsonage in excellent condition. Improvements were made when necessary. In 1978-1979 a new addition to the front of the church enclosed the outside steps creating an entry, office space, and new rest rooms in the basement. In a dedicated effort to return the sanctuary to the way it looked at its beginnings, in 2012 Reichel Painting of Mankato repainted the entire sanctuary following early pictures of the church. Carpet was installed, and a chapel was created in one of the entry rooms. With the closed-circuit television in the chapel, those who can’t make the stairs can participate in the services.
The cemetery, founded in 1892, remains a site to behold as you drive up to the peaceful resting place of our forefathers and those who dedicated their lives to East Sveadahl. The Peaceful Garden, given in memory of all our Saints in 2009, is located at the north entrance. It is a serene, tranquil, and favorite place for visitors to come home to and remember precious memories.
With changes to our world, change is inevitable within the church. Congregations in our area were struggling to find ways to keep their doors open as memberships decreased. With the closing of West Sveadahl in 2006, East Sveadahl looked to find another partnership. From 2006 through 2011, United in Faith Ministry, a joining of First Lutheran of Butterfield, Bethlehem Lutheran of Darfur, Albion Lutheran, Long Lake Lutheran, and East Sveadahl, attempted to meet the pastoral needs of this wide community with two pastors. For a variety of reasons this partnership was dissolved, and East Sveadahl had some difficult decisions to make.
In 2011 the opportunity to join with Augustana Lutheran Church in St. James became a viable option. AES Ministries (Augustana and East Sveadahl Lutheran Churches) was created to share a pastor, fellowship, and worship services. This was a rekindling of the relationship that began in 1880 and lasted until 1920. With this new relationship, there’s new growth and new life for all members of both East Sveadahl and Augustana congregations.
COVID-19 in 2020 forced East Sveadahl to find new ways to reach its congregation when they couldn’t worship in the church. FACEBOOK still connects those who can’t worship in person with the worship services. We now have a website available to anyone anywhere. New technology enabled the church to install a sound system connecting all areas of the church – sanctuary, chapel, and basement.
AES Ministries sponsors radio broadcasts on a local radio station twice a month – one broadcast from each church.
We continue to serve through love, dedication, loyalty, and service of mankind, humanity, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. As we celebrate each day, we humbly thank God for our many years and pray for continued blessings for years to come.
SOME INTERESTING FACTS
~ At the August 5, 1870, organizational meeting, the following were elected: Chairman - Pastor
Carlson from Carver, MN; Secretary - A.P. Lund; Deacons – John Beck (3 years), Gustaf Sjoquist (2
years), A.P. Westberg (1 year); Trustees – Martin Person (3 years), Sven Nelson (2 years), and John
Swanson (1 year).
~ During the first 100 years (1870-1970), 936 persons were baptized, 790 confirmed, 1077 received,
1069 dismissed, 246 married, and 393 funerals were conducted.
~ Ten sons of the congregation have entered the ministry:
L.H. Beck, F.M. Eckman, N.J.W. Nelson, J.W. Eckman, A.F. Lundquist, J.I. Bergstrand, Victor E.
Beck, Theodore E. Conrad, William R. Conrad, and Douglas Olson.
~ The Swedish language was used exclusively in the church until about 1922. By 1927 Swedish was
not used at all.
~ In 1895 the congregation had the largest membership in its history. Neither before nor after did it
have so many children. It had 315 communicants and 204 children!
~ The weekday school in 1885 was held for 21 weeks with about 60 pupils with no less than 4 teachers.
During the first 50 years, there were 81 teachers and 2,010 children in weekday school!
~ The congregation has called five women pastors. The first was M. Ruth Edberg (1986-1991)
followed by Evelyn Weston, Michelle Rowell, Kathleen Ulland-Klinkner, and Mandy France.
~ There were 66 charter members of Svea Dahl in 1870.
~ There have been four church buildings – 1872 ($601.00), 1879, 1888, 1904 ($10,000.00)
~ There have been three parsonages – 1875 ($100.00), 1886, 1910 ($6,000.00)
~ According to the notes of Rev. A.T. Lundholm (1905-1916), during his first 10 years, he delivered 945
sermons, 472 in the country and 473 in the city; performed 202 baptisms, 102 in the country and 100
in the city; confirmed 194 youths, 99 in the country and 95 in the city; married 55 couples, 33 in the
country and 22 in the city; received 314 members, 75 in the country, 239 in the city; officiated at 84
funerals, 45 in the country, 39 in the city. “During those years I made at least 1,560 trips between
the congregations, a distance of more than 8,500 miles, mostly with my two excellent bronchos.”
~ In 1945, due to war restriction of paper, there was only one printed program with brief historical data
printed for the Diamond Jubilee. (It measured 7x14 folded with 9 pages.)
~ The Rev. Michael Sandell, our first pastor who was ordained at Chisago Lake on June 11,1870, was
called to visit the congregation at Svea Dahl once a month!
~ Major Celebrations:
1920 – 50 Years – Golden Anniversary October 29-30-31, 1920
1930 – 60 Years – August 31 – September 1, 1930
1935 – 65 Years – August 4, 1935
1945 – 75 Years – Diamond Anniversary August 3-4-5. 1945
1950 – 80 Years – August 20, 1950
1955 – 85 Years –
1960 – 90 Years – August 7, 1960
1970 – 100 Years – Centennial Anniversary August 2,8,9, 1970
1995 – 125 Years August 6, 1995
2021 – 150 Years – Due to COVID, this anniversary was celebrated a year later August 8, 2021
~ Phyllis Jurgens was the first woman council member.
~ Organizations through the years: [date organized]
Ladies’ Aid [1888], Dorcas Society [1889], Junior Mission Society, Women’s Home and Foreign
Mission Society [1918], Red Cross Auxiliary, Lutheran Church Women (LCW) [1958], WELCA
Literary Society, The Young Peoples’ Society, Luther League [1893], Youth Crusader League,
Family Night, Sveadahl Youth League, AES Youth
Lutheran Brotherhood [1918], Lutheran Churchmen
Nelson Cornet Band [1889], Junior Mission Band [1918], Organists, Cantors, Choirs, Ladies
Chorus, Youth Crusader Choir
Weekday School, Sunday School [1873], Vacation Bible School, Confirmation, Wednesday TLC
(Teaching the Love of Christ) [2012], ROAR [2023]
~ There have been 22 pastors from 1870 – 2023.
~ Pastors through the years:
1870–1875 Rev. M. Sandell of St. Peter came to lead worship
1876–1880 Rev. H. P. Quist
1880–1890 Rev. P. J. Eckman
1891–1905 Rev. L. J. Fihn
1905–1916 Rev. A.T. Lundholm
1916–1924 Rev. T. A. Conrad
1925–1927 Rev. A. D. Mattson
1927–1942 Rev. C. E. Fisk
1943–1965 Rev. Wenzel A. Bloom
7/1/1965–1/1/1969 Peter J. Seaberg
9/1/1969–6/29/1975 Martin Luther Cornell
7/6/1975–9/27/1978 Donald J. Roberts
10/15/1978–9/1/1981 Maxwell E. Johnson
9/8/1981–4/28/1985 Eric Steven Aune
2/4/1986–5/14/1991 M. Ruth Edberg
Interim Daniel Fuelling
1/1/1992–6/30/1999 David G. Fretham
Interim Lyndon West
8/15/1999–8/31/2000
9/1/2000–1/29/2003 Jeffrey Allan Wallager
Interim Obed “Duke” Lundeen
3/1/2003–11/30/2003
1/14/2004–5/22/2005 Evelyn Jane Weston
Interim David J. Webster
6/0/2005–3/19/2006
3/26/2006–3/15/2010 Lowell Asplund
3/26/2006–3/15/2010 Michelle R. Rowell
Interim David S. Wall
3/28/2010–2/25/2011
Interim David J. Webster
2/27/2011–9/1/2011
Interim Paul Lutter
9/01/2011–10/9/2011
11/29/2011–12/2/2019
Kathleen Ulland-Klinkner
Interim Gene S. Alms
1/2/2020–6/30/2021
8/15/2021– Mandy France
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