The Estonian Lutheran Church near Gleason: A testament to enduring faith

In the quiet countryside near Gleason on a dead-end road sits a humble little clapboard church that seems to have been all but forgotten. Located off of Hwy. J, and Estonian Rd. the Estonian Lutheran Church and cemetery occupy four acres surrounded by private property. It is in a state of disrepair, though at various times individuals and organizations have tried to save and restore the little Estonian Church, but it will take a concerted effort in order to do so. Still, from time to time various aspects of the church are repaired and the work of vandals erased, and it continues to endure, a standing testimony to the grit and fortitude of those who built the little church in 1914.
Over the course of history, the country now known as Estonia - which is located in northern Europe on the Baltic Sea near Sweden, Finland, and Russia - was occupied and ruled by one regime after another - from the Teutonic Order in medieval times to Denmark, Sweden, the Russian Empire, the Soviet Union, Nazi Germany, and the USSR. While they declared their own independence in 1918, Estonia was invaded, occupied, contested, and annexed by these other regimes until their independence as a country was finally restored on Aug. 20, 1991.
Due to the political unrest and religious oppression, Estonians emigrated from their homeland to the United States, and some of those Lutheran Estonians settled near Gleason and Irma around 1900. Church services were originally held in area homes.
Though the quaint little church is unassuming, it has a rich history. It was the first Lutheran Church ever built in the United States by Estonian immigrants. The growing Lutheran congregation purchased the four-acre property in 1907 and completed the church building in 1914. It was also the only Estonian Lutheran Church built in the country until 1972.
The Estonian Lutheran Church near Gleason never had a full-time minister; however, services were held in the church frequently until 1935 - with traveling and lay ministers officiating. Frequently babies were blessed and deceased members memorialized whenever the traveling minister could come around to the area; in the meantime, lay ministers officiated over baptisms, weddings, funerals, and worship. At its peak in 1920, the little church had a membership of 125 people, because Lincoln County had a large settlement of Estonians who lived here. However, by 1935, many of the next generation’s young people from that community began to move out of the area in search of a better life, and gradually fewer and fewer services were held in the church.

In 1964, Estonians came together from across the country to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the little church, but gradually activity at the church dwindled until services there stopped altogether.
Originally the church was furnished simply, with rows of backless plank benches - for the women and children on one side and the men on the other - with a simple podium to use as a pulpit and a plain altar, sometimes decorated with a simple crocheted doily and seasonal fresh flowers from area gardens in the summer. At one time the church had a bell in the bell tower, donated to the congregation by Sears and Roebuck, and there was a small organ that was donated to be used in the church. However, over time, when services were no longer being held there, these plain and simple furnishings disappeared or were destroyed by vandals.
In more recent years, some individuals have cleaned up the little church a bit, made some repairs, and placed a few simply constructed wood furnishings inside the building again.
Those so inclined can come and sit in the sacred space, where voices once joined in song and prayer to praise God have long passed from this earth, some of whom are buried in the little cemetery behind the church. Perhaps in the quiet stillness they can imagine what it was once like to worship there with a full congregation. Perhaps they can take a moment to say a quiet prayer.