Church Records

Houses of Worship

CHURCHES BEFORE 1900

VICTORIA

• ST. MARY'S CATHOLIC CHURCH - established 1824
  402 S. Main St., Victoria, TX 77901.
• FIRST METHODIST CHURCH - established 1840
  407 N. Bridge St., Victoria, TX 77901
• FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH - established 1841
  2408 N. Navarro, Victoria, TX 77901
• TRINITY LUTHERAN CHURCH - established 1851
  106 N. DeLeon, Victoria, TX 77901
  See information on church records availablebelow or visit their website.
• FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH - established May, 1852
  301 N. Glass, Victoria, TX 77901
• TRINITY EPISCOPAL CHURCH - established 1867
  1501 N. Glass, Victoria, TX 77901. Visit their website.
• PALESTINE BAPTIST CHURCH - established 1869
  608 E. Convent, Victoria, TX 77901
• WEBSTER CHAPEL METHODIST CHURCH - established 1871
  405 So. Wheeler, Victoria, TX 77901
• OUR LADY OF LOURDES CATHOLIC CHURCH - established 1875
  105 N. William St., Victoria, TX 77901

INEZ

• ST. JOSEPH'S CATHOLIC CHURCH - established 1880
  Inez, TX

MISSION VALLEY

• ZION LUTHERAN CHURCH - established 1898
  See information on church records availablebelow.

SYNAGOGUES

• TEMPLE B'NAI ISRAEL - established 1872
  604 N. Main St., Victoria, TX 77901

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HISTORY AND EARLY MEMBERS OF ZION LUTHERAN CHURCH
MISSION VALLEY, TEXAS

Taken from the Church Records given by the Rev. Harold E. Tesch, Pastor
Contributed by Sharron Torrence

ZION LUTHERAN CHURCH is located in the peaceful community of Mission Valley on Farm Road 236, North of Victoria and South of Cuero.
In approximately 1898 services were held in homes in Mission Valley by PASTOR KUELPS of Arneckeville. This practice was continued by PASTOR HERZIG and PASTOR G. RAPP until 1910 when PASTOR JOHN BERGNER began holding services in the Mission Valley Schoolhouse. After a year of organizational details, on the first Sunday in August, 1915, ten families were officially released from the Arneckeville congregation to form their own congregation but to be served by the Arneckeville pastor. By the end of that year the Mission Valley congregation had grown to 14 families. In 1917 this congregation was received into the First Evangelical Lutheran Synod in Texas as affiliated with the Iowa Synod.

POSSIBLE LIST OF CHARTER MEMBERS - 1915

WILLIE LASSMAN (received Arneckeville) - 1889
Mrs. DORA LASSMAN (received Arneckeville) - 1892
Mrs. LAURA DREYER (received Arneckeville) - 1899
ADAM SCHAEFER, SR. (received Arneckeville) - 1899
OSCAR SCHAEFER (received Arneckeville) - 1911
OTTO ALBRECHT (received Arneckeville) - 1911
GEORGE GISLER (received Arneckeville) - 1911
ALFRED ANGERSTEIN (received Arneckeville) - 1913
GOTTLIEB SCHAEFER
WILLIE DREYER
HENRY BILLO, transfer from Schroeder
HEINRICH RUSCHHAUPT, transfer from Meyersville
ALBERT F. REINEKE - 1915
MARCUS LASSMAN

OTHER EARLY MEMBERS, no dates given

ADOLPH ANGERSTEIN
OTTO REINEKE
MRS. A. W. ARNOLD
FRED DREYER
MRS. G. W. HELLER
ROBERT KORNFUEHRER
ERVIN LASSMANN
EMIL LASSMANN
WALTER SCHAEFER

MEMBERS RECEIVED:

1916
ADOLPH ADICKES
WILLIE REINECKE
1920
ADAM SCHAEFER, JR.
FRITZ ADICKES
ED RUSCHHAUPT
1922
FERD DENTLER

FROM THE CHURCH RECORDS - PASTORS

PASTOR J.BERGNER 1901-1924
PASTOR L. NIKOLAI 1925-June 1925
PASTOR E. MEIER 1925 - 1936 April
PASTOR L. KRAMER May 1936 - 1944
PASTOR G. E. GRUEBER Dec. 1944 - Dec. 1951
VICAR Wm. PUTMAN June 1952 -June 1953
VICAR JOHN D. O'DONNEL June 1953 - June 1954
PASTOR Wm. PUTMAN July 1954 - May 1959
VICAR ALLAN SAGER June -July 1959
PASTOR DONALD LUCKEMEYER 1959 - 1964
PASTOR JOHN W. HARPEL 1964 - 1957
PASTOR JAMES P. BURNETT 1958- 1971

The confirmation class of 1925 was:

ELFRIEDA SCHAEFER (MRS. RALPH GISLER)
ETHEL SCHAEFER (MRS. LINWOOD GISLER)
OSCEOLA SCHAEFER (MRS. JACK SCHAEFER)
GEORGIA SCHAEFER (MRS. S. KIRKHAM)
ELENORA LASSMANN (MRS. EARL BAECKER)
WILLIAM J. MEYER
ALPHONSE GISLER
WALTER ANGERSTEIN
GUS LASSMANN
LEON LASSMAN

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TRINITY LUTHERAN CHURCH
RECORDS ON MICROFICHE

The following records are now on microfiche and are available both at the church (by appointment only) and at the Victoria Public Library.

• Miscellaneous: 1851-1915
• Marriages: 1851-1914
• Baptisms: 1851-1914
• Deaths and Funerals: 1851-1915
• Confirmation: 1851-1914
• Communion: 1923-1930