St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church
Pekin, Illinois
1853-1872 Records
St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, founded by German immigrants, was organized in 1852 using the name of St. Johannes Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Initially services were held in member’s homes; of course, the sessions were conducted in German. It was not until the summer of 1917 with the start of World War I that some services were held using English. Over time the German service was phased out.
The congregation’s first building was erected in 1853 on the corner of Fourth and Ann Eliza Streets.
1871-1916
During the year 1871 the church erected its next church building directly across the street from the location of their first building. The church was built on the north side of Ann Eliza Street.
Cost of building: $5047.60
Bell: $492.00
Cost of base holding bell: $55.00
Dedication Date: November 19, 1871
The church was renovated in 1916: a basement was put in, and many major changes were made in the sanctuary itself. The outside of the church was stuccoed. In June 1917, it was voted to have English services every two weeks in the evening.
Cost of repairs and improvements: $8000.00.
1916-1926
1927-Present
The cornerstone was laid in 1926 for the new St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church located at its current location of 711 Court Street, Pekin, Illinois. The new church used a gothically inspired design.
Built 1926 - 1927
Dedicated the week of February 20-27, 1927
Today, St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church
remains a vibrant and integral part
of the Pekin community.
You may search an online index to the St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church records below. The index currently covers the 1853-1872 records. More years will be added to the index as transcriptionists continue indexing. Here are some tips on how to do searches.
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| wdt_ID | wdt_created_by | wdt_created_at | wdt_last_edited_by | wdt_last_edited_at | Last Name | Given Name(s) | Maiden Name | Book | Event | Pages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | 4 sick in bed or on death's bed | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 300 | ||
| 2 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Ackermann | Sebastien | 1853-1872 | Marriage | 52 | |
| 3 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Adami | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 301 | ||
| 4 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Adami | Johanne | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 299 | |
| 5 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Adami | Maria | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 299 | |
| 6 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Adami | widow | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 300 | |
| 7 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 284,285,301 | ||
| 8 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | (Luscus) | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 290 | |
| 9 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Anna | 1853-1872 | Confirmations | 191 | |
| 10 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Böfke Volkers | Behrens | 1853-1872 | Burials | 232 |
| 11 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Focken | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 295 | |
| 12 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Fokken | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 294 | |
| 13 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Greetje Harms | Barkmeyer | 1853-1872 | Membership | 8 |
| 14 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Gretje | 1853-1872 | Baptism | 119 | |
| 15 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Gretje | 1853-1872 | Burials | 238 | |
| 16 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Gretje Harms | Barkmeyer | 1853-1872 | Burials | 237 |
| 17 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | his wife | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 285, 294, 295 | |
| 18 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Ida | 1853-1872 | Membership | 6 | |
| 19 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Johann | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 298, 299, 300 | |
| 20 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Johann | 1853-1872 | Membership | 6, 8 | |
| 21 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Johann Fokken | 1853-1872 | Marriage | 54 | |
| 22 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Luemke Johanna | 1853-1872 | Baptism | 97 | |
| 23 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | mother-in-law | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 298 | |
| 24 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | mother-in-law (?) | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 299 | |
| 25 | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Mike | 15 May 2024 09:24 AM | Aden | Mrs. | 1853-1872 | Communion List | 298, 299, 300, 301 | |
| Last Name | Given Name(s) | Maiden Name | Book | Event | Pages |
Search Tips:
- The current index covers church records from 1853-1872. More years will be added to the index as transcriptionists continue indexing.
- The table contains five columns: Last name, Given Name, Maiden Name, Event, and the matching Pages in the records book.
- The table starts in Last Name, Given Name order. Any column may be sorted by clicking on the column title. Each click will reverse the order between ascending or descending.
- Don't forget the records were usually in German. So, you want to search for your ancestor's German name as well as American name - for instance, search for Johann as well as John.
- English translation were done by John Garlisch.
- Question marks in an entry means the transcriber made a guess but was not absolutely sure of the interpretation of the handwritten entry.
- Info in parentheses were made by the transcriptionist.
- Parentheses in the Pages column indicates multiple entries on that page. For example: “23 (2)” means the name was listed twice on page 23.
- As you enter criteria into a search box, the display will automatically change to show only matching rows.
- Use the Search Box the upper right to search the entire table. For example, if you enter "Hinrich", the display changes to those rows that contain a Last Name containing "Hinrich" or a Given Name containing "Hinrich" and/or a Maiden Name containing "Hinrich"
- Use the boxes at the bottom of each column to limit your search only to that column's content. Suggested uses:
- Last Name - limits the rows displayed to just the last names you want. Useful when you are not sure of the spelling. For instance, to search for possible last name spellings of Behrens, by entering only "Beh" you might find more spelling variations of the name.
- First Name – limits the rows displayed to just those first names you want. Handy when there are several variations of a last name but you are sure of the first name's spelling. Or, if you are sure of the Last Name but not the spelling of the First. For example, you may look for all variation in the name Johann by just searching First Name by entering "Joh" which would list any first name starting with the letters Joh.
- Event - only show info for the event your looking for such as "Burials"
- Pages – if you wanted to know everyone who was listed on the same page as your ancestor, you could filter to just one page number.
- Combination - by placing criteria into multiple boxes you can do more sophisticated searches such as all folks with Last Name "Behrens" whose First Name contains "Mar".
- Don't forget to use the clear filters button above the upper search box to clear any earlier searches or you may get unexpected results!
