About the Church

It was on May 30, 1882, that a number of Lutherans met in the home of Mr. C. F. Rittman for the purpose of organizing a congregation. The Rev. C.F. Obermeyer of Little Rock was present and presided at the meeting. The congregation was organized as St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Missouri Synod, Unaltered Augsburg Confession of Clearpoint Arkansas County, Arkansas.

In the absence of a church building, services were conducted for some time in the homes of the members, though the matter of building a house of worship was immediately discussed. On September 14, 1882, the congregation by vote selected the Armbruester Tract which is now Lone Tree Cemetery; the building was dedicated on March 11, 1883.

It wasn’t until 1885 that the congregation decided to move the church to its current location in Stuttgart. The original building was moved so it is said, “By rolling the wooden church building across the prairie on wooden logs and ox team.”

What a sight that must have been! St. John’s has such rich history and heritage; the above information doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface. So much has happened since that first wooden building was drug across the prairie. The picture on the front cover of the bulletin show the three sanctuaries that different generations have called “church” through the years. Our history is something to be celebrated, and we look forward for another 125 years, thanking God for all that he has done for us.