St John's Lutheran Church - Former

The former St John’s Lutheran Church, Elizabteh Street, Gilgandra is now closed and the property sold about 2009. It "was developed by the Lutheran community that moved to Gilgandra from South Australia from the 1890s. It stands as a testament to the strength of this community and its Christian faith and to the forces that led to the movement of people within Australia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries."  The first meeting place of the Lutherans in the Gilgandra district, was in the home of Mr J G Scholz, and later in other local homes. These gatherings were ministered to by pastors from the Riverina and Sydney. 1913 saw the organisation of the district into two congregations, under the leadership of the Rev E Graebner of Sydney. Early services were held in the Methodist Church building in Gilgandra, and the Union Hall in Biddon. Their first resident minister, who arrived about 1920, was the Rev C Venz. In 1925 the Gilgandra congregation dedicated its first church building in Elizabeth Street, and also welcomed the arrival of the Rev W P Lehmann, who remained their pastor until 1936.  During his tenure the church consolidated and in  1933 saw the northern and southern parts of the large parish organise into separate parishes. The original parish stretched for Biddon-Gilgandra in the north to Alectown-Forbes in the south, a distince of 130 miles.¹  A new St John's church building was opened in 2009, in Castlereagh Street (see separate entry - 2827). More historical information/photographs of the former church/congregation are invited. Photographs uploaded 27/3/2020.

Note 1: Back to Gilgandra, September 20 ~ 26, 1937. page 56. https://img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/f1f62acf-9b28-418c-8c0f-de967d7ec204/Back%20to%20Gilgandra%20Sept%201937.pdf