About Us
Welcome to Immanuel Lutheran Church – Avilla, Indiana
“I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” – Romans 1:16
History of Immanuel, Avilla
The first white settlers in Allen Township, Noble County, Indiana, began arriving in the late 1830s and early 1840s. Among them were German Lutherans who emigrated from northwestern Germany and the present-day French province of Alsace.
They had no church or minister, but God had His eye on them and sent a great missionary, the Rev. Friedrich Wyneken. Rev. Wyneken, a native of Hanover, Germany, answered God’s call to minister to Lutherans in the wilderness of the American frontier.
His call was to St. Paul Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne and Adams County. While serving there, he went on several missionary journeys across northern Indiana, northwestern Ohio, and southern Michigan—gathering German Lutherans and organizing congregations.
Several of his journeys brought him to Allen Township in Noble County, where he found a group of Lutherans near the future town of Avilla. They welcomed him with open arms and were thankful for his interest in them and in the Word of God.
According to the records of Immanuel congregation, Rev. Wyneken would come every four weeks and hold services in the home of Samuel Weimer.
The first members of Immanuel, including the Weimer, Diehm, and Housholder families, built their first church—a log cabin—on land owned by Samuel Weimer. This cabin was located in a wooded area across from what is now St. Mary’s Catholic Church on North Main Street in Avilla. It was there that Immanuel Lutheran Church was officially organized in 1844.
In 1848, the congregation built a larger structure north of Avilla along the Sycamore Creek, just beyond the intersection of Old Ind. 3 and the new four-lane Ind. 3.
A third church was built in 1855 where our current cemetery stands today, 1.25 miles northwest of Avilla. This frame building measured 38 feet long, 26 feet wide, and 16 feet high. It cost $375 in building supplies, with church members contributing their labor. That building was used until 1893 and later became a hospital for Sacred Heart Home in Avilla.
By 1892, the growing congregation had outgrown that church. After much discussion, it was decided to build a new church in town at the current location on West Albion Street. The new church measured 60 feet by 30 feet with a 20-foot-high ceiling and a steeple. The cornerstone was laid on June 25, 1893, and the church was dedicated on October 22, 1893.
Immanuel operated a day school from its founding until 1922. Up until the early 1900s, all worship services, school instruction, and catechism classes were conducted in German. Later, English-language services were introduced in the morning, with German services in the afternoon. German services were discontinued entirely by 1935.
The church building was extensively remodeled in 1953–54, and a new educational wing was added in 1974. At that time, the congregation donated part of the old church hall to the Town of Avilla to serve as a branch library. As part of the town’s centennial celebration in 1976, the building was relocated to West Albion Street. Originally, it had been used as the parsonage in the 19th century at the site of our current cemetery. Between 1893–94, it was moved into town to serve as the day school and was used for Sunday school and community gatherings until 1975.
Over its more than 160 years of ministry, Immanuel has been served by 26 pastors. The longest-serving was Rev. Dean Bearman (1972–2003). Our current pastor is Rev. Patrick Kuhlman.