St. Peter's E&R Church

ST. PETER'S UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST

Pleasant Grove, Missouri

Click here for list of members and date they joined

St. Peter's Pleasant Grove Church was the pioneer Church for the German Evangelicals who braved the cold Atlantic and the snags of the Missouri River to settle here in the 1840's. It is known as the first church organized by the German-speaking people in Cooper County.

Pleasant Grove is located in Prairie Home township, Cooper County, Missouri. Rev. Charles Hofneoister organized the congregation to be known as St. Peter's Evangelical Church. Charter members were: Adam Schilb, Jacob Schilb, Nicholas Blank, George Knorp, Frederick Stock, J.A. Spieler, J.G. Spieler, William Baker, F. Schenck, T. Miller, Ernst Kirschman, Jacob Schilb, Jr., Henry Meyer, H.J. Meyer, A. Kaempfer, and William Hobrecht. Also listed were: Godfried Kenepfer, _________ Becker, Andreas Spieler, David Huth, and Henry Webber, and wives of the above.

Their first house of worship was made of logs, replaced by the present building in 1877. German was the language of worship and conversation. On May 20, 1918, the congregation voted to use English.

In the early years, the Pleasant Grove congregation was part of a triple charge with Moniteau Advent, Jamestown and Pleasant Grove. In 1893 Moniteau voted to be independent.

The name of the congregation has changed over the years. The Evangelical Church of North America and the Reformed Church joined to become the "Evangelical and Reformed Church.

A number of years later, this union merged with the Congregational Christian Church and is now the United Church of Christ.

In the spring of 1919, the building was extensively improved and again in 1951 when a full basement was dug a short distance away from the building. The building was then moved and set in place over the basement. At that time it was equipped with a wood burning furnace, recently converted to gas.

The first Christmas tree and program ever presented at the church was on December 25, 1883.

In 1914 the pastor's salary was raised to $300, providing he could preach equally well in German and English. The question of providing feed for the minister's horse was left unresolved. However it was voted to rebuild the hitching rails.

In 1917 it was decided to lower the pulpit to the level of the rostrum floor and at once with no cost to the church. The old organ was replaced with a new piano, Emil Pfeiffer and Henry Spieler having solicited the $230 in donations.

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