St. Paul United Church of Christ (Lansing, Mich.)

The German Evangelical St. Paul Church was founded in 1886 by Reverend C.C. Haag and sixteen founding families, led by G. Almendinger, Martin Gassenmeier, Christ Guenther, Joseph Hoffman, Ludwig Jungkind, Philip Kainoth, Charles Piella, Ulrich Rosli, Fred Schubel, Johann Schwarz, Philipp Seyfried, Felix Siegrist, Henry Siegrist, Dr. Charles Ultes, Julius Karl Wolf, and Gottlieb Ziegler. (The spelling of names changed over the years; these spellings were taken from the first bound volume of the church's constitution and records.) The young Reverend Haag and his wife had been called from Germany to America by the Michigan District of the Evangelical Synod of North America as a response to the interest shown by these families to begin another German church in the Lansing area.

The first services were held on September 12, 1886, in a church rented from the English Church Society. St. Paul's was officially founded on October 17, 1886. With Rev. Haag also conducting services in Charlotte and Grand Ledge, his wife assumed leadership of the Sunday School class of fifteen children and also started the Ladies Aid Society for the women of the church.

In 1888, under the leadership of Reverend F. Macer, St. Paul Church purchased land at the corner of Genesee and Walnut Streets, on which they built a frame church and parsonage. Nineteen years later, with the congregation led by Reverend E.H. Spathelf, these buildings were sold and moved, and St. Paul Church built the current brick building, completed in 1908. By 1909 contributing membership had increased to 55 people, and a 17-member choir was formed. By 1936, contributing membership had increased even further to 250 people. Church records were kept in German until circa 1920, and services were still conducted in German until around 1930.

The St. Paul's Missionary Society was started by women of the church in 1926 to conduct mission work "in Christian service to the local church community, Evangelical Synod, and the Kingdom at large." In 1930 the Tabitha Society was formed as a community service and fund-raising group for the church. (This group later became the Women's Fellowship in the 1940s.)

1934 saw the merger of the Evangelical Synod and the Reformed Church in the United States, and the church's name was subsequently changed to St. Paul Evangelical and Reformed Church.

In 1954, the church purchased the lot adjacent to the church and razed the apartment house on it, which had been previously gutted by fire. The following year the empty lot was used to build a "New Wing" on the church for a choir rehearsal room, robe storage, meeting space, kitchenette, furnace room and Sunday School rooms. The addition was dedicated on October 30, 1955.

In 1961 another merger took place. The church was renamed St. Paul United Church of Christ after the joining of the Evangelical and Reformed Church with the Congregational Christian Church.

A fire in the spring of 1978 caused heavy smoke damage to the building and destroyed many of the church's historical records. Throughout the years the church celebrated its major anniversaries with celebrations, and for its centennial celebration, the mayor of Lansing declared October 19, 1986, "St. Paul United Church of Christ Day."

St. Paul Church shared its building and facilities with a number of various new churches and organizations in the 1990s, including St. Stephen's Community Church (1992-1993), Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (1996); and the Church in the City, hosted by The Mount Hope Church (1997-1998). They also shared their facilities with the Michigan Dyslexia Institute, Horizons (divorce counseling) and Harvest House Children at Risk.

The church struggled to continue in the 1980s and 1990s for a variety of reasons. The congregation fought continually through planning, fund-raising, efforts to increase membership and votes to remain in operation as an individual church. On January 11, 1998, however, the congregation voted to dissolve, and the last service was held by Reverend Douglas Asamoa on April 19, 1998.

From the guide to the St. Paul United Church of Christ (Lansing, Mich.) records, 1886-1998, 1940-1998, (Bentley Historical Library University of Michigan)