St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church & School — Sherman Center

The story of St. John Evangelical Lutheran Congregation begins in the early 1850's. A group of emigrants from Germany settled in Town Sherman and held Lutheran worship services in their log-hut homes. In 1855, the Rev. Ottomar Fuerbringer of Freistadt, came to serve these Lutherans during the week. He encouraged them to organize as a congregation of their own. They did and bought two acres of land centrally located in the Township. They erected a log church and annexed a log parsonage to it. On August 5th, 1855, this church was dedicated and the Rev. W. Kolb was installed as the first resident pastor. In 1857, the congregation joined The Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and was also duly incorporated. The Christian Day School also had its birth in 1855. For the first twelve years, it was taught by the pastors of the congregation. Today, the congregation employs seven professional church workers to carry out the ministry of the church and school. St. John's congregation is the mother of three area Lutheran congregations: St. Paul's of Cascade was formed in 1866; St. Stephen's of Batavia in 1884; Emmanuel of Adell in 1915. It was in 1958 that St. John (Sherman Center) and Emmanuel of Adell agreed to become a dual parish (one pastor serving two congregations). In April 2002, both congregations decided to return to their single-parish status and have their own pastor. In 2005, both the church and school celebrated its 150th anniversary (1855-2005). We praise our heavenly Father for His continued guidance and many blessings over these many years of seeking to “feed His lambs” by providing Christ-centered instruction.