First Lutheran Church Directory – 1966

The scene a few days after the August 28, 2014 fire

It's very distressing to follow the story of the aftermath of the tragic fire that destroyed First Evangelical Lutheran Church on Sixth Street in Lorain.

Besides having sympathy for the parishioners (including Sandy of Sheffield Lake, who is a member there and helps me with my blog research from time to time), I also have a connection with the church. My parents and grandparents attended First Lutheran for years, and our family as well – until we switched to a new Lutheran Church that opened on the west side of Lorain in the late 1960s.

While the good parishioners of First Evangelical Lutheran Church decide whether to rebuild or relocate, I thought it might be a good time to post a small piece of the church's history that's been in the Brady family for years. It's a 1966 directory of the congregation (below).

There opening page documents the pastors and church officials.

Next are pages spotlighting church life.

Next are pages about church activities and community social involvement.

The main body of the book, of course, is the collection of photographs of church members. Here's a sample page that includes the Reverend Robert A. Boettger, as well as my grandmother (Helen Bumke).

People had large families back then and the fact is pretty well represented in the directory. It's typical to see at least 2 or 3 kids or more in each family. You also see a lot of widows such as my grandmother and her friends.

The back of the book includes an alphabetical listing of all church members including those serving in the military.

The directory – published by National Church Publications of Mansfield, Ohio is a quaint snapshot of First Lutheran in the mid-1960s. It's definitely a glimpse of a bygone time, when people made it a priority to belong to a church, and wear their "Sunday best" to services.

Looking through the book, I'm amazed at how many people I know and recognize, including a few civic leaders. Parishioners are not just from Lorain either – I saw people listed from all over Lorain County, including Amherst, Elyria, Sheffield Lake, Vermilion and Avon Lake.

There's also several of my fellow Masson Elementary classmates – once again proving to me that those bonds forged in Lorain City Schools during childhood are still stronger than any I've experienced since.