Old Salem Shrine

Founding and Early History

In 1855 several German immigrant families left St. Jacobs, Ontario, Canada for Minnesota. These families were members of the Evangelical Church in Canada and shortly after settling in Minnesota they requested that the Evangelical Church in Canada send a pastor to Minnesota. In November 1856, Andrew Tarnutzer, the first Evangelical minister in Minnesota, arrived in Winona, Minnesota and by February 1857, he arrived in St. Paul. On March 2, 1857, Rev. Tarnutzer organized the first Evangelical class of members of the Evangelical Association in America, which became known as the Salem Evangelical Church.

The first camp meeting was held on a neighboring farm July 1, 1857. It was reported that there were seven tents erected, two covered wagons, and that there were nine conversions. The second camp meeting was held in 1858 and there were 13 conversions. These 22 conversions, along with the original families, comprised the charter members. Among the first members of the Salem Kirche were: Michael Gackstetter, Adam Laschinger, Jacob Binder, Jacob Bosshardt, George Glassing, Frederick Goldberg, Frederick Wm. Goldberg, C. F. Kachel, John Kochendorfer, Heinrich Schafer, Gottfried Schmidt, John Simon, and Frederick Zehnder.

From 1857 until 1874, a small building across the road from its present site was the place of worship. This small frame building had siding that ran up and down, two windows, one door, and several wooden benches. In 1874, H. E. Bunse became pastor to both Old Salem and Emanuel Evangelical Church at Pine and 11th Street. Rev. Bunse began construction of the current building on farm land donated by the one of the original families from Germany. The church measures 20’ 6” x 32’ 6”, has a hall or tower entrance of 5’ x 7’, and measures 14’ from the stone foundation to the eaves with a tower of approximately 30’. Farmers and people in the neighborhood helped in the construction. Before the present building was completed, Rev. Bunse was elected presiding elder of Emanuel Evangelical Church. Rev. Ernest Hielscher was assigned to Salem Evangelical Church.

Preservation after closing

Salem Evangelical Church held continuous worship services until about 1913, at which time most of its families migrated to the Winifred Street Church (which later became Faith United Methodist Church first located in West St. Paul, now in Inver Grove Heights), with some of the families moving to the West Side Community Church (now a part of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Mendota Heights) and the Zion Methodist Episcopal Church up the street. After its closing, ownership was continued as an historical site by the Evangelical Church formed in 1922, by the Evangelical United Brethren Church formed in 1946, and then by the United Methodist Church formed in 1968. In 1976, Old Salem Shrine, as it has become known, was named United Methodist Church Historic Site No. 78.

After its closing, the church building and cemetery fell into disrepair. In the 1930s, a group of interested people organized a committee to care for the building and cemetery grounds. Arthur Schlukebier was elected president and Christian J. Zehnder became secretary-treasurer. An ongoing committee, comprised primarily descendants of the original founders, continues to care for the historic site today.

Until the late 1960s when Dakota County renamed streets, the road on which the church is located was known as Salem Church Road. It remains the only street in Dakota County to have two historic churches, both once named Salem, on the same road. Salem Church Road still exists within the boundaries of the City of Sunfish Lake.

Preserving and sharing the heritage

Since 1955 the committee has held an Annual Founders Day service on the first Sunday in June, and in 1998 began an Epiphany Service on the first Sunday in January. The antique pump organ is used at these worship services. The potbelly wood-burning stove is used to heat the building for winter events. Each year there are weddings, family reunions, tours, and other special occasions held at the church. The church building, cemetery, and the grounds capture the local color of a rural atmosphere and a sense of heritage of pioneer courage and steadfast faith in God. The church and adjoining cemetery reveal a great deal about the history of Dakota County, Minnesota, between the 1700s and the present.