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Construction of the Wilmington Lutheran Church got underway the spring of 1908 and was completed right before Christmas of that year.
Wilmington Lutheran Church of rural Caledonia will be observing the 100th anniversary of its church building this weekend with events slated for both Saturday and Sunday.
On Saturday, June 6 area residents are invited to a hog roast from 4 to 7 p.m. The Special Export Barbershop Quartet will provide musical entertainment.
A rededication service has been scheduled for Sunday, June 7 at 9:30 a.m. with special music and refreshments afterward.
The following is a transcript from the June 10, 1909 issue of The Spring Grove Herald reporting on the massive celebration held 100 years ago when the new church was first dedicated. It was sent to The Argus by Marilyn Sylling.
New Church at
Wilmington Dedicated
Impressive Ceremonies Held
Sunday, June 6, 1909
“Wilmington! On to Wilmington!! That seemed to be the slogan on Sunday last, when hundreds and hundreds, yes, thousands of people gathered from hamlet, village and metropolis – from every home within a radius of miles and miles, wended their way Wilmingtonward. Where to? What for? Join us and you’ll see.”
So began the Spring Grove Herald’s lengthy news article dated June 10, 1909, about the dedication of the new Wilmington Church building.
According to official Norwegian (now translated into English) minutes of the congregation, the process of building a new church had begun just a couple years earlier in March of 1907. A meeting of the Wilmington congregation had been held (at the old location) to discuss a new church, and the place to build it.
As with many major building projects, there were differing opinions. A straw vote was taken that day whether to build a church at a new location offered by Ole P. Vermager a few miles northeast of the original location. Forty-two (42) voted in favor of the church being built at the new location, and 27 voted against.
It was decided that a committee of five should be elected to study whether, in fact, the location offered by Mr. Vermager would be suited for a cemetery. In May the committee reported back that it had carefully investigated the lot that Mr. Ole Vermager had promised to give for a church and cemetery site. It was found to be “quite stone-free and of the soil suited for a cemetery.”
Location conflicts
But this finding gave occasion for a long exchange of words, since the opponents of the church being moved had prepared a resolution in advance, signed by 38 members, wherein they, in the most definite way, protested against the move. However, they stated that they would help those ‘up north’ to build a fitting church on a site convenient for them, with the understanding that the northerly people help the southern people to build one on the old site, and the two churches would be considered as the congregation’s joint property. The reasons given were that the “old people had chosen the original site and therefore it ought to still be there, and the cemetery would be more neglected if the church was not there.”
At that point another vote was taken to go ahead and accept the committee’s report to build a church on the site offered by Mr. Vermager. By ballot - 65 voted in favor of accepting the committee’s report and 29 were against it.
A building committee was then elected with names still familiar to the Wilmington congregation – E. O. Steneroden, Carl Morken, Ole Hefte, Helge Burtness, Ole H. Wermager and Pastor Wein.
Upon a suggestion that the new church be similar to Big Canoe, the committee went to Big Canoe for a tour. Pastor Seehuus at Big Canoe showed them around and gave them bits of advice and tips with regard to building a new church. He pointed out individual shortcomings to be avoided, e.g. their basement was too deep in the ground, the tower/steeple, which is 100 feet tall, was too low and should have been foundationed a little higher. For the roof, slate ought to have been used in place of shingles, even if it was somewhat more expensive. Pastor Seehuus thought that the balcony should not be larger than for space for an organ and choir, since a larger one would be an assembly place for disorderly young people at the worship services.
Plans are finalized
On May 30th the building committee presented their report and the points were acted upon. In addition, because of the differences in opinion regarding the new church location, Pastor Reque presented the following motion which was approved: “If it can serve the purpose that peace and unity be maintained in the congregation and that approximately all will be along to build the new church, then BE IT RESOLVED that the old church remain standing in order to be used for funerals and individual other edification (meetings) and afternoon worship services.”
On September 30th at a meeting of the congregation the committee presented the plan from Architects Shiek and Roth in LaCrosse. The church would be 80’ long including the altar and the base of the tower. The nave portion 36 x 54 and the wing part 18 x 40. The base of the tower would be 15 x 15 and the height to the plates 16 feet. A church of that size, the architects had figured, would provide seating space for 370 persons. The architects thought that a slate roof would be preferable to shingles since really good shingles were very difficult to obtain. Slate would indeed cost a couple hundred dollars more, but be far more lasting.
Agreement is reached
1) That there should be a slate roof and that either Winona or Menomonie sand-pressed brick should be used on the outside of the walls.
2) That the windows, contents and furnace be turned over to the committee to order and plan.
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