Church: History: First Reformed (Tabor): Lebanon, Lebanon Co, PA Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Linnea T Miller ltmiller@geocities.com USGENWEB NOTICE: Printing this file by non-commercial individuals and libraries is encouraged, as long as all notices and submitter information is included. Any other use, including copying files to other sites requires permission from the submitters PRIOR to uploading to any other sites. We encourage links to the state and county table of contents. ____________________________________________________________ Centennial History of Lebanon Classes of the Reformed Church in the U.S., 1820 - 1920, Compiled by Prof. Thos. S. Stein, Lebanon PA: Sowers Printing Company. Excerpts from Chapter VI: "Sketches of Congregations" First Reformed (Tabor), Lebanon. Rev. W.D. Happel, Ph.D., Pastor. The First Reformed Church of Lebanon, Pa., traces its beginnings back to 1747. It is the child of the Grubben Church, which was located about two miles southeast of Lebanon, in South Lebanon township. It was a union church. What is now Salem Lutheran Church of Lebanon was a joint owner of the property. The cemetery adjoining the church is still in existence. We can scarcely realize how far back this carries us. The Revolutionary War belongs to this distant past having occurred from 1774 to 1781. But this congregation then already had a history of thirty-five years. It came into existence seven years before the French and Indian War, in which one of its future pastors, the Rev. John Conrad BUCHER. played an important part as a chaplain. The congregation was almost destroyed through the ravages of this war. In 1760 George STEITZ, the founder of Lebanon, deeded about two-thirds of the plat of ground now in possession of the church at the northeast corner of Tenth and Walnut streets, as a place on which to erect a Reformed church building. The condition on which this plot was given was that a red rose should be paid annually by the congregation in the month of June to him and his descendants forever, if demanded. The congregation should always be called Tabor. The Grubben Church was absorbed by the Tabor or First Reformed Church. In 1765 this land was bought outright by the church for five pounds and a full title was secured. In 1780 about one-third of the plat now owned by the church was bought for one hundred and fifty dollars. It is the portion along Tenth street on which the main church building now stands. There was standing on it at the time a stone school building which had been erected prior to 1773. The first church building (log) was erected in 1762 at the northeast corner of the present plot, facing Strawberry and Partridge alleys. In 1792 the church building was damaged by lightning to such an extent as to make necessary the erection of a new church. This resulted in the erection of the church edifice which is still standing. The corner-stone was laid in June, 1792. Rev. Wm. F. HENDEL, Jr., preached the sermon on the text: Gen. 28:22, "And this stone which I have set for a pillar shall be God's House." The building is of limestone. It was erected during the pastorate of Rev. Ludwig LUPP, while Washington was serving his first term as President of the United States. In the course of time the building underwent a number of changes. In 1827 the steeple was erected. In 1847 it was made a two-story building. In 1914 the entire structure was rebuilt. The original building was maintained but thoroughly renovated. A new chapel was erected as an integral part of the original building. The entire building forms a unit and impresses a person as being built at one time. It is one of the best and most commodious edifices in the city. The cost was about thirty-three thousand dollars. The congregation owns a parsonage. The first parsonage was purchased in 1783. In 1890 a new parsonage was erected on the original site at Eleventh and Chestnut streets. The plot of ground across the street from the church to the west was bought in 1841 and 1848. Like all congregations this had a small beginning. With the growth of the town it also grew. In 1818 the charge consisted of six congregations and three hundred and eighty-four members. In 1864 the congregation became a charge by itself and we find the membership to be eight hundred. In 1884 just before the organization of St. Mark's the membership was nine hundred and fifty, the largest reported at any one time. In 1860 St. John's Church was organized, when sixty-eight persons were dismissed. In 1877 St. Paul's Church at Bismark was organized with eighty-six members from the First Church. One hundred and sixty-six persons were dismissed for the organization of St. Mark's in 1885. Tempelman's Chapel at Rexmont was organized in 1888 with thirty members from this congregation. Grace Church at Avon was organized in 1895. Forty persons were dismissed for this organization. St. Stephen's was organized in 1907 with seventy persons from the Mother Church. Fully five hundred persons were given by this church at the time of the organization of the other churches and subsequently these churches were also helped in obtaining their properties and some were granted support for a time. The membership now (1920) is eight hundred. It is interesting to notice that Coetus met in the first building in 1775. What is now Eastern Synod, which formerly included practically the whole denomination, met in this church in 1803, 1829, 1860 and 1879. General Synod met here in 1890. At a special meeting in this church in 1843 Rev. Dr. F.W. KRUMMACHER of Germany was given a special call to become professor in the Theological Seminary. Dr. KRUMMACHER's declination resulted in the calling of Rev. Dr. Philip SCHAFF, who became famous in this country as a church historian and prolific writer and author on theological subjects. In 1837 there was a revival in the congregation with one hundred conversions. What was known as the "New Measure System" gained entrance into some of the Reformed congregations. In 1841 the sum of $4,300 was raised for the College and Theological Seminary in four days.20 In October, 1841, Rev. Dr. BERG of the Reformed Church and Father STEINBACHER of the Roman Catholic Church conducted a debate extending over several days in this church on Protestantism and Roman Catholicism. From the beginning of its history a parish school was connected with the church, in which religious instruction was imparted in addition to the branches then usually taught. it was discontinued between 1830 and 1840. In August, 1828, the Sunday School was organized. The superintendents have been Jacob ROEDEL, Wm. YEHO, Wm. HIESTER, John ERMENTROUT, Elias RABER, Jos. L. LEMBERGER and Frank Z. MILLER. Of these Jos. L. LEMBERGER had been superintendent since 1860, laying aside the active superintendency at the end of fifty-five years' service. The membership of the school is 700. The following ministers have gone forth from this congregation: Rev. Philip GLONINGER, Rev. James B. UMBERGER, Rev. Leighton G. KREMER, Rev. Walter E. GARRETT, Rev. A. Nevin BRUBAKER, Rev. Walter J. YINGST, Rev. John LENTZ and Rev. Raymond E. BRUBAKER. A number of Revolutionary heroes were associated with the church in its early history. The following have been pastors: Rev. John Conrad TEMPELMAN, 1747 - 1759. Rev. John WALDSCHMIDT, 1759. Rev. Frederick Casimir MUELLER, 1762 - 1766. Rev. John Conrad BUCHER, 1768 - 1780. Rev. John Wm. RUNCKEL, 1780 - 1784. Rev. Andrew LORETZ, 1785 - 1786. Rev. Ludwig LUPP, 1786 - 1798. Rev. Wm. HIESTER, 1800 - 1828. Rev. Henry KROH, 1828 - 1835. Rev. Henry WAGNER, 1835 - 1851. Rev. F.W. KREMER, D.D., 1851 - 1889. Rev. D.E. KLOPP, D.D., 1889 - 1898. Rev. Edward S. BROMER, D.D., 1898 - 1905. Rev. H.E. BODDER, 1906 - 1909. Rev. W.D. HAPPEL, Ph.D., 1910 - . Rev. J. Rauch STEIN and Rev. Frank S. BROMER were for a time assistants during the pastorates of Rev. KLOPP and Rev. Dr. BROMER, respectively. The consistory is constituted of the following: Elders: Wm. F. SPAYD, Frank Z. MILLER, James E. WALTER, David O. MADER, George D. DULLABAHN, Christian B. KREIDER. Deacons: Ira J. KREIDER, Charles W. HAAK, Ward B. KENNEDY, Miles WEABER, Harry C. FELTY, Edward F. WISE, Harry B. KREIDER, Robert L. MILLER. W.D.H.