Church History: Zion's Reformed Church, Brickerville, Lancaster County, PA

Copy contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Abby Bowman

Copyright 2006.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm
http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/lancaster/
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History of the Classis of Lancaster of the Eastern Synod of the
Reformed Church in the United States, 1852-1940;

Part II, Histories of the Congregations of the Classis of Lancaster, Pg. 143-146

Printed by The New Holland Clarion, New Holland, PA;
Editors Rev. Daniel G. Glass, Rev. C. George Bachman, Rev. Harry E. Shepardson,
Rev. John F. Frantz, Rev. J. N. Le Van, D.D.
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ZION'S REFORMED CHURCH, BRICKERVILLE

Rev. George B. Raezer, Pastor


The church record of Zion's Church, Brickerville, was started during the 
pastorate of Rev. John George Wittner, who served the congregation from 1766 to 
1770.  The first entries were in his own handwriting.  How much older the 
congregation is than the earliest date in this record is unknown.  According to 
the inscriptions on tombstones in the adjoining cemetery, there were burials at 
this place as early as 1751, which is an indication that the church must be 
regarded as being in existence before the church record was started.

In 1747 Peter Becker, Wendel Laber, Jacob Hagy, and Tillman Shitz purchased 
between two and three acres of land from Sebastian Royer, for the purpose of 
erecting thereon a Church building, and providing a burial ground.  The date on 
the deed is September 21, 1747.  It is likely that the purchase of this tract of 
land in 1747 opened the way for the erection of a church building soon after 
that date.  This year, 1747, is generally regarded as the time of the 
organization of Zion's Church.

In many of the older references to this church, the name "Royer's Church" is 
found.  This was form many years the name by which the church was known.  As was 
so often the case, the church was named after the man on whose ground it was 
located and from whom the land had been purchased.

An interesting fact, in connection with the purchase of this ground, is the use 
of three different names in the deed to designate the church in whose behalf the 
land was being secured.  The church is spoken of as the "German Reformed 
Church", the "Dutch Reformed Church", and the "Reformation Presbyteriors 
Meeting".

The list of pastors of Zion's Church is as follows:

   Rev. John George Wittner . . . . . . . . 1766-1770
   Rev. John Christopher Gobrecht . . . . . 1770-1779
   Rev. John Waldschmidt. . . . . . . . . . 1779-1786
   Rev. Anthony Hautz . . . . . . . . . . . 1786-1790
   Rev. John Christian Wilms. . . . . . . . 1790-1802
   Rev. Charles Helfenstein . . . . . . . . 1803-1807
   Rev. John Theobald Faber . . . . . . . . 1807-1819
   Rev. F. A. Herman. . . . . . . . . . . . 1819-1823
   Rev. Daniel Hertz. . . . . . . . . . . . 1823-1831
   Rev. Jacob Leymeister. . . . . . . . . . 1831-1833
   Rev. Samuel Seibert. . . . . . . . . . . 1833-1837
   Rev. Christian Weiler. . . . . . . . . . 1837-1849
   Rev. I. E. Graeff. . . . . . . . . . . . 1849-1851
   Rev. Isaac Gerhart . . . . . . . . . . . 1852-1859
   Rev. W. T. Gerhard . . . . . . . . . . . 1859-1870
   Rev. D. C. Tobias. . . . . . . . . . . . 1870-1891
   Rev. F. Pilgram. . . . . . . . . . . . . 1891-1896
   Rev. F. C. Hullhorst . . . . . . . . . . 1896-1904
   Rev. H. H. Spahn . . . . . . . . . . . . 1904-1910
   Rev. James B. Musser (Supply). . . . . . 1910-1911
   Rev. George B. Raezer. . . . . . . . . . 1912-

The first church building, erected about the year 1748, was a wooden structure.  
It stood in the southeast corner of the burial ground.  This building was used 
until 1813, when it was torn down, and the lumber used in building a dwelling 
house in Warwick.

During the Revolutionary War, the original church building was used as a 
hospital in caring for soldiers.  A number of these died during their stay in 
the old church, and are buried in the congregation's cemetery.  Unfortunately 
the graves of these patriots are not marked.

The second church building of this congregation, which is the one in use today, 
was erected in 1813.  This is built of brick, with a foundation of dressed 
sandstones, a number of which stones are from six to eight feet in length.  The 
church has a gallery extending along three sides.  Originally the church had a 
wine-glass pulpit with a sounding board.  This pulpit has since been removed, 
and another put in its place.

Zion's Church had no Sunday School until the year 1875.  On May the ninth of 
that year a school was organized.  For a number of years the Sunday School 
remained open only during the summer months, and was discontinued.  The Sunday 
School was reorganized in 1913.  Since 1917 there has been no Sunday School 
organization in the Church, chiefly because of the scarcity of leaders to carry 
on the work.

Zion's Church was incorporated June 3, 1869 during the pastorate of Rev. W. T. 
Gerhard.  The officers of the congregation at the time the charter was secured 
were:  Elders, John Eitnier, George Rock; Deacons, Isaac Enck, Solomon Steffey, 
Henry Z. Enck; Trustees, George Enck, Henry Apple.

The membership of Zion's Church has never been very large.  The largest number 
of communicants in the congregation's history was in 1825, when seventy partook 
of the sacrament.  Within the next four decades the number of communicants 
dropped as low as ten.  The present membership of the church is twenty-two.