The History of

The history of Trinity Lutheran Church should begin with a brief history of the Texas Panhandle and especially the history of the first Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod Lutherans who lived in the Panhandle.

Prior to 1900 the Texas Panhandle was considered a semi-arid grassland. By 1880, the Indian tribes had been defeated, most of the buffalo herds had been destroyed by hide hunters and the land was being used for cattle grazing. Due to the spread of the railroad system and to the effort of real estate agents, portions of the Texas Panhandle economy were gradually changed from cattle only to agriculture and cattle. Many of the settlers came from the Midwest and some were Lutheran.

The first Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod Pastors of record in this area were Rev. A.M. Lohman who came in 1908 and Rev. W.E. Dube who came in 1909. Rev. Lohman and Rev. Dube had preaching stations in Zita, Dawn, Happy, Hereford, Friona, Dumas, Dalhart, Claude, Amarillo, Clarendon, Shamrock, Hartley, Texas, and Canode, New Mexico. Three graduates from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis were assigned in 1909 to assist in the spread of God's word in the Dalhart, Plainview and Amarillo areas. From these seeds, Missouri Synod Lutherans had grown to approximately 2300 souls by the early 1990's in Circuit I ( Amarillo, Borger, Childress, Dalhart, Dumas, Pampa, Perryton and Shamrock) and 800 souls in Circuit II ( Canyon, Friona, Hereford, Lariat and Plainview).

The Borger area changed dramatically in 1926 when oil was discovered in Hutchinson County. Within one year the city of Borger was organized and settled by 25,000 to 30,000 people. Schools and homes were built, streets were developed and the city government was established. The tumultuous life in Boomtown Borger gradually settled down to a more cultured and refined style. Investments in businesses related to the oil industry assured Borger of a strong economy.

Rev. H. R. Frerking

Rev. H. R. Frerking then of St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Wichita Falls, wrote a letter in 1948, a portion of which read as Follows: "...we didn't feel that Borger offered very much, since it was doubtful that many Lutherans would settle in such a place; however, around the first of September 1937, a family visited our church in Amarillo, and after explaining that they had lived in Borger for several months and had in that time met up with a few Lutheran people, I decided to make a survey of the place and determine the possibilities of starting a mission there. I decided to run a notice in the Borger News Herald asking all Lutherans and people interested in the organization of a Lutheran mission in Borger to meet at the American Legion Hall. When the night for the meeting was at hand, it was one of those very rare nights in the upper Panhandle when a fog as thick as pea soup was covering the whole country side. It was almost too dangerous to be out on the highway, but my wife and I went to Borger for the meeting. To our amazement, as we looked in the door, we saw a gathering of people that at once caused us to believe that we were in the wrong place...you should have been there at that first meeting. Here were men and women who worked along side one another day after day, but did not know they were Lutherans. There must have been at least 40 adults and a number of children. We found that we had at least 60 souls with which to begin a mission.

Rev. W. F. Bielefeldt

The first service in Borger was held in the American Legion Hall at 6th and Deahl on October 13,1937. No record is available as to the number of services held in the American Legion Hall. However, on October 23,1938 the Trinity congregation was organized with the Rev. W. F. Bielefeldt serving as pastor. Of the 25 charter members who were present at the first service, the two that survived the longest are Mrs. N. J. Beals and Mrs. Alton Tindall.

Mrs. Beals died August 16, 2001. She was

92 years old. Mrs. Tindall died March11, 2007.

She was 97 years old.

Mrs.N. J. Beals & Mrs. Alton Tindall


Rev. J. C. Roock	Rev. H. F. Peiman	Rev. F. H. Schuster	Rev. R. L. Peterson

Rev. C. C. Dohse	Rev. P. F. Uhles	Rev. H. F. Kelm	Rev. Doug Koehler

Rev. J. C. Roock was installed as Pastor of Trinity in September 1939 with services continuing to be held in the American Legion Hall. On November 19,1939 a school building north of Skellytown was purchased, moved to a lot on west Coolidge, remodeled and dedicated as a house of worship. The building cost was $215, Moving costs were $125 and the lot cost was $150. In the summer of 1942, the church building was moved to lots that had been purchased on the corner of Hedgecoke and Jefferson. Also, a parsonage was purchased and moved to a lot adjacent to the church lots. On October 19, 1942, the congregation was debt free although it continued to receive financial assistance for a portion of the operating expenses from the Texas District Mission Board. Rev. Roock accepted a call to Brownwood, Texas, in May 1947.

Rev. H. F. Peiman from Vernon, Texas, accepted the call to Trinity and was installed as Pastor in August 1947. In the summer of 1948, the church building was enlarged by a 20 x 50 foot addition with an approximate cost of $4,000. In October 1948, a new Hammond organ was purchased. By January 1, 1950, the congregation had grown to 100 members and voted to become self supporting. On May 27,1956, the present sanctuary costing approximately $44,000, was dedicated. Rev. Peiman accepted a call to Farwell, Texas, in April 1964.

Rev. F. H. Schuster was installed as Pastor of Trinity in May 1964. In 1965, the old sanctuary and the fellowship hall addition were sold and moved off the church property to prepare for a new Parish Hall and educational unit. The corner stone for the unit was laid on July 11,1965, and the formal dedication of the addition was held on December 12, 1965. Rev. Schuster accepted a call to Iowa in December 1971.

Rev. R. L. Peterson accepted a call to Trinity and was installed as Pastor in June 1972. Pastor Peterson served until July 1974 when he accepted a call to Illinois.

Rev. C. C. Dohse served as Pastor of Trinity from July 1975 until 1979. A Rogers 3-manual plus pedal board organ was purchased in 1978 for $30,000 and the sanctuary balcony was remodeled to accommodate the organ sound system.

Rev. P. F. Uhles was installed as Pastor of Trinity in March 1980 and served until July 1,1988 when he retired from the ministry. During these eight years new steel siding was installed on portions of the Sanctuary and Educational Building. A house and lot adjacent to the church property were purchased to accommodate future expansion. Nearby lots were purchased and paved for additional church parking. Stained glass windows were also installed in the Sanctuary.

Rev. H. F. Kelm was installed in July 1988 and served until September 1998. Rev. Kelm started two Sunday morning services, one Traditional and one Contemporary in April 1997. The Traditional service started at 8:30 AM and the Contemporary service started at 11:00 AM. Rev. Kelm accepted a call to Redeemer Lutheran Church in Beaumont in September 1998. In October 1998 the Borger Church had a split and separated into two separate Church Bodies, Trinity Lutheran and Good Shepherd. Rev. Robert Kuhlmann served as interim Pastor for Trinity Lutheran from November 1998 until May 2000.

Rev. Douglas Koehler accepted a call to Trinity and was installed March 25, 2001. Pastor Koehler served until November 2002 When He accepted a call
to Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Ridgewood New Jersey. Pastor Steven Misch from Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Borger agreed to serve as Vacancy Pastor starting in February 2003. Pastor Misch served as Vacancy Pastor until July 2008 when He accepted a call to be the Mission and Ministry Facilitator for Area A of the Texas District of the LCMS. Pastor Don Poole from Dumas now serves as Vacancy Pastor.