For today’s Mystery, here’s a look at a facility where it appears someone left the doors open, and the leaves blew in. Can you figure this out? If so, send your idea to elliott@brack.net, and be sure to tell us your hometown.
Several people found similar looking Lutherans churches in other cities. It might seem that the frugal Lutherans use one set of architectural plans when building churches around the country!
Allan Peel of San Antonio, Tex. supplied this information: “Today’s mystery photo is of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Resurrection, located at 825 Greene Street in Augusta, Ga. The church was built between 1925 and 1926. The history of this congregation goes back to at least 1855 when two different missionaries were sent by the South Carolina Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to establish a church in the growing German community in Augusta. On February 20, 1859, the German speaking Evangelical Lutheran Church Community of Augusta, Georgia was established. The congregation stayed together for more than 20 years during which time services were held exclusively in German.
“However, in 1883, a group of members requested that some of the services be conducted in English, but the church council denied their request. This motivated 20 members to withdraw from the congregation and form a separate congregation in the town … the Holy Trinity English Lutheran Church. In 1885 the German church, which was known as St. Matthew’s German Lutheran Church, had a minister who was fluent in both German and English and began holding some services in English. In 1910, the German Church celebrated its 50th anniversary, and held its final service in German. Holy Trinity English Church took an active part in the celebration, and during the next decade, several attempts to unite the two congregations were made … but each attempt failed.
“World War I changed all that. Following World War I, it became difficult to be ‘German’ in the U. S., and so by June 1921, the congregations had successfully merged again. They took on the name Resurrection, for Christ’s resurrection and also symbolizing the rebirth of the church as a united congregation.”
Also recognizing the photograph were Cassandra Delapp, Colbert; Susan McBrayer, Sugar Hill; and George Graf, Palmyra, Va.
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