Church: Location of various chruches in Berks/Schuylkill Counties,
Pennsylvania. 

This copy contributed for use in the USGenWeb/PaGenWeb by 
Nelson R. Sulouff zuli@sprintmail.com


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______________________________________________________________________
There have been repeated questions on the Berks Co. RootsWeb ListServ 
asking what churches were in Berks Co. in the 18th Century, or asking
about the locations of certain churches during that time.

Following information is summarized from Charles H. Glatfelter, PASTORS 
AND PEOPLE: GERMAN LUTHERAN AND REFORMED CHURCHES IN THE PENNSYLVANIA 
FIELD, 1717-1793; VOL I; PASTORS AND CONGREGATIONS; Pennsylvania German
Society: Breinigsville PA 1980, pp.233-265. Much more information for
each paragraph is contained in the Glatfelter book than is presented
here, often with detailed lists of Pastors who served the congregations.
Unfortunately the Glatfelter book has been out of print for some time
and is hard to buy, but it is available on public interlibrary loan. 

Often it is possible to obtain photocopied pages from a book through
public interlibrary loan at no cost. All you need to do is provide the 
information given in a paragraph below and ask the research assistant at
your library to get a copy of the whole paragraph from the book in
another
library.
_____________________________________________________

GERMAN LUTHERAN AND GERMAN REFORMED CHURCHES IN BERKS COUNTY 1717-1793
_____________________________________________________

ALLEGHENY: from about 1766 in Brecknock Twp. 
- Reformed not later than 1767: Rev. John Waldschmidt ministered there 
as early as 1 Jan 1767
- Lutherans had Rev. William Kurtz as minister at Allegheny shortly
thereafter

ALLEMANGEL: Lutherans from mid-1740s in Albany Twp. near Berks-Lehigh 
Co. line. Lutherans also came here from Albany Twp. and Lynn Twp. in 
Lehigh Co. In 1746 Rev. H. M. Muhlenberg, pastor at New Hanover, 
arranged for 50 acres to be used by Allemangel Lutherans to build 
church. Earliest surviving record book was begun in 1768 by Rev. Daniel
Schumacher, though it is known that Rev. Tobias Wagner had served the 
congregation earlier.

- Reformed congregation was extended the right to share use of the
Allemangel building in 1768. In 1808 this became a Union Church, shared
equally by Lutherans and Reformed congregations.

- Moravians established church in this area in 1751

ALSACE: Lutheran and Reformed congregations gathered from early 1740s in
formerly Alsace Twp. which was later Muhlenberg Twp. No church registers
or land records exist, but Rev. H. M. Muhlenberg recorded a Union Church
existing there in 1747.

AMITY, AKA "NEW STORE": Lutheran and Reformed congregations organized
1753 in Amity Twp. and had built a union church by 1754. A register was
begun in 1759. The union was disbanded in 1975 and the Reformed
congregation retained property.

ATALAHA, AKA ATOLHEO or BEAVER CREEK: possibly founded in 1740s. Acreage
was laid out prior to 22 Mar 1748 for church building. Rev. John Caspar
Stoever's baptismal record includes about 150 baptisms between 1746-1757
at "Atolheo," considered to be the same location. He was followed by
Rev. Nicholas Kurtz, who referred to the location as "Beaver Creek."

BELLEMAN'S, AKA SALEM OR SOLOMON: from late 1750s or 1760s in Bern Twp.,
now Centre Twp. The church is sadly lacking in early land documents or
registers.

BERN, AKA BERNE (also "STONE CHURCH" after 1765): Reformed congregation
from 1730, and Rev. Henry Goetschy opened a register in May 1738. This
church became a Union Church in 1837, with Lutherans probably using the
facilities for some time before then.

BLUE MOUNTAIN, AKA NORTHKILL (also ZION after 1819: from the 1740s in
Upper Tulpehocken Twp. A warrant was obtained in 1746/47 for acreage on
which to build a Lutheran church, and which was apparently also used
from the beginning by the Reformed, by which it became a union church.
Baptisms in the register go back as early as 1743.

COLEBROOKDALE: from the 1730s on both sides of the Berks and Montgomery
county line, founded by Lutherans.

DUNKEL'S, AKA ONTELAUNEE OR MAIDENCREEK: from before 1744 in Greenwich
Twp., for Reformed congregation, register begun in 1746. Lutherans
joined in use of the facilities as early as the 1760s, and sometime
before 1861 it formally became a Union Church which was dissolved in
1969.

EPLER'S: dating from about 1765 for Reformed congregation. Early land
records and congregational register have not been found. The Lutherans
shared use of the facilities as a union church from 1852 until 1949.

FOREST, AKA FORREST OR PLOW: formed in late 1760s in Robeson Twp. for
Lutherans. Some records are extant from 1767 onward. It appears Rev.
William Kurtz was the first pastor, but in 1779 a schoolmaster, George
Butler, began preaching and conducting sacraments, and in 1782 Isaac
Pawling, an Episcopalian, conducted services. Following that Traugott
Illing served as pastor. In 1808 a program to build a new church got
underway, and after 1810 it became a union church shared by the
Reformed. The union continued until 1956.

GIBRALTAR: A deed dated 1791 notes that property "along the road from
Reading to Birdsboro, in trust for a church" had "for divers years past"
been used as a graveyard in Robeson Twp. The "church" to be built on the
property was to be open for use by any Christian congregation that
contributed to its use, thus it eventually became a union church. No
building was erected on this property until about 1809, and probably
congregational functions did not begin here until after 1800.

GREENWICH, AKA BETHEL: located in Greenwich Twp., a congregation was
formed by Lutherans about 1761, mostly from German immigrants who had
arrived between 1749 and 1754. Evidently they had built a schoolhouse
soon after arrival and used it also for worship. A church building was
erected in 1761 and the Reformed shared the facilities on alternating
Sundays. Rev. Helfrich Schaum was called as first pastor, and he
conducted dedication service in 1762. Another church was built here in
1803 and called New Bethel Zion. A full union church was formed by the
Lutherans and Reformed in 1844, and it ended in 1969. At that time the
Lutherans merged with Dunkel's (AKA New Jerusalem)and the merged
Lutherans are now known as Mt. Zion located 1/2 mile east of Krumsville.
The Reformed congregation became New Jerusalem Zion, located east of
Krumsville and about 1/2 mile from Mt. Zion Lutheran.

HAMBURG: located in the town of Hamburg, congregations were formed just
before or in 1790 by Lutheran and Reformed inhabitants of the town. This
union church lasted until 1898. The Lutherans went into St. John's at
Pine and Church Streets. The Reformed went into the church at South
Third and Pine Streets, which is now a UCC congregation.

HEIDELBURG, AKA ST. DANIELS OR ECK: located in Heidelberg Twp. a
Lutheran congregation was organized about 1750 with Rev. Nicholas Kurtz
their pastor. The cornerstone for their building was laid in 1751 and it
was noted as a "well built new church" in 1754. When a new building was
erected 1814-1817 it took the name of St. Daniel's church, and another
local name was the "Eck" church. It served as a union church with the
Reformed from 1876 until 1905.

HEIDELBERG, AKA CACUSI OR HAIN'S: located in Lower Heidelberg Twp. begun
in late 1730s for Reformed congregation. Around 1739-1740 it appears in
documents with the name Cacusi. A register was begun for the
congregation 26 Apr 1746. Their tract of land was enlarged in 1752 and
included a cemetery. In 1766 a stone church was built, which was still
there in 1980. Apparently this same church was called Haehn's church in
a 1905 document. It is now called St. John's, Hain's and is located near
Wernersville.

LONGSWAMP (AKA MACUNGIE? OR LITTLE LEHIGH?): located in Longswamp Twp.,
congregation dating from the 1740s. Jacob Weymer, a later pastor,
recorded that the Reformed congregation in this place had resolved to
build a house of worship in 1748. In 1753 land was secured for a church
and cemetery, and in 1791 a second church was built on the property. In
1817 a Lutheran congregation was formed, and with the earlier Reformed
congregation a union church was formed at Longswamp in 1852.

MAXATAWNY AKA KUTZTOWN: located in Maxatawny Twp., a Reformed
congregation was organized in the 1730s, a church was erected in the
1750s. A Lutheran congregation was formed here not later than 1789,
though a Lutheran minister, Daniel Schumacher, recorded baptisms here in
1756, 1758, 1766, 1767, and in 1770. In 1789 Reformed and Lutheran
congregations in this area agreed to build a union church together in
Kutztown on a lot that had been provided for that purpose when the town
was laid out in 1780. In 1980 the Lutheran congregation was St. John's
at 201 East Main Street, and the Reformed are included in St. John's UCC
Church at Walnut and Whiteoak Streets, Kutztown.

MAXATAWNY, AKA DE LONG'S AND BOWERS: The old Maxatawny congregation
split in 1759, giving rise to this congregation named after the donor of
land for a new church and school. A church register was begun for the
Reformed in 1765. A union church with Lutherans existed here from 1871
to 1900. In 1980 the church was known as Christ UCC, Bowers.

MICHAEL'S, AKA ST. MICHAEL'S: located in formerly Bern Twp. now Tilden
Twp. formed in the mid 1760s. As early as 1766 a survey shows Lutherans
had church land at this place and in 1768 adjacent land is transferred
to the Lutheran and Reformed congregations. The church building at this
site was dedicated in 1769, and in 1781 Lutherans sold a half-interest
in the property to the Reformed congregation. Earliest surviving
parochial acts record dates from 1810. In 1980 St. Michael's Church,
with Lutheran and UCC congregations, was situated about four miles west
of Hamburg.

MOLATTAN, AKA AMITY: located in Amity Twp., a large tract of land was
granted by William Penn in 1701 to the Swedish Lutheran pastor, Andrew
Rudman, and his countrymen. Swedes began moving onto the tract. A log
church was built here in 1736-37 and called Molatton. Is at present-day
Douglasville. Preaching and sacramental services were intermittent as
there was no regular pastor. Germans, English, and Irish also settled in
this area making it difficult for ministers to preach sermons that all
could understand. When a Swedish pastor came to conduct regular
services, the Lutherans and Reformed organized their own German church
and called it Amity Church. After the regular Swedish pastor left, only
occasional ministries were conducted there, and eventually it became an
Episcopal Church, known in 1980 as St. Gabriel's, Douglasville.

MOSELEM AND ONTELAUNEE: located in Richmond Twp., "The two Moselem
churches are believed to be the oldest Lutheran and Reformed
congregations in Berks county." The Lutherans began a church register in
1741, and after 1744 there are many baptisms and marriages entered in
chrological order. Building of a church began in 1740: after dedication
in 1743 it was called Sebastian's Church. When a new church was built on
the site in 1761, it was called Zion's Church. A register begun in 1764
for the Reformed congregation refers to itself as "Peter's Church in
Richmond Township." Evidently there was a place where Reformed ministers
preached before 1760, but without a formally organized congregation
there. In 1980 the Lutheran congregation is Zion Church four miles west
of Kutztown, and the Reformed congregation came into St. Peter's UCC
three miles north of Fleetwood.

NEW ALLEMANGEL AND FRIEDENS: located in Albany Twp. and organized in
1770, New Allemangel was formed after a split from the old Allemangel
Church. They completed a new building which was dedicated in 1771.
Lutheran Daniel Schumacher and Reformed Frederick Berger provided the
pastoral support for the breakoff congregation and a new union church
register was begun on 20 May 1771. It was widely known as White Church.
The Reformed withdrew from the union in 1960 and the Lutheran
Congregation in 1980 was known as Friedens Lutheran, located at Stony
Run 12 miles north of Kutztown.

NORTHKILL OR BERN TWP.: located in formerly Bern Twp., now Penn Twp, and
organized about 1745 by Lutherans, and not to be confused with the Blue
Mountain Church about 5 miles northwest, also located along the
Northkill stream and sometimes referred to as the Northkill Church. It
is also easy to confuse Northkill Church with Little Tulpehocken about a
mile and half to the southwest. John Caspar Stoever may have included
some pastoral acts done at Northkill in his records, but Nicholas Kurtz
came there December 1746 and was their regular pastor after July 1747.
Christ Church, Tulpehocken, joined with Northkill in the call issued to
Pastor Kurtz, and these two churches became the very large Tulpehocken
parish until Northkill withdrew in 1808. The first church building was
replaced by a brick building in 1791. From 1834 to 1897 the church
served a union congregation. In 1980 the congregation is Lutheran, now
known as Friedens and located at 533 North main Street, Bernville.

OLEY: located "east of the Schuylkill River and north of the mouth of
the Manatawney Creek at Pottstown," reportedly a Reformed congregation
was established here in 1736 by Rev. John Philip Boehm, but he returned
to preach and administer sacraments only twice a year. Difficulties
plagued this congregational organization and a list of pastors who came
and went is unreliable. Pastors John Loescher and Casper Griesemer
followed on an occasional basis, and by 1755 a stone church was almost
completed. The earliest surviving register dates to 1763. The last
mention of Oley as a Reformed church occurs in coetus minutes in 1765.
This church was never union, only Reformed, the Lutherans building their
own church nearby in 1821.

OLEY AKA HILL CHURCH: Lutheran activity at Oley prior to organization of
a congregation included baptisms by John Caspar Stoever, and preaching
by Valentine Kraft. There is reference in a 1745 letter to the "Lutheran
congregation" which met in a house at Oley. Rev. Henry Melchoir
Muhlenberg reported in 1747 that he had conducted services "'in the Oly
mountains,'" and a later report indicates a rude log church was built
there in that year. Land for a Lutheran cemetery was obtained at Oley in
August 1747, but it was not surveyed until 1750. In 1754 student pastor
Lucas Raus began a church register for the Lutheran congregation in the
hills of Oley at Colebrookdale. In 1786 a stone church was dedicated
which was shared by Reformed, who had been using the cemetery for some
time earlier. It was called the Hill Church. A clear title to this land
was obtained in 1829 by the trustees of the Lutheran and Reformed
congregations in Pike Twp. The union church, situated 3 miles north of
Boyertown, continued to exist in 1980, with each congregation having its
own name, viz., St. Joseph's Lutheran and St. John's Reformed.

READING: A congregation was organized by Lutherans as early as 1751, and
a Reformed congregation was formed as early as 1752. Neither
congregation held regular pastors for long: the Lutherans had 11 pastors
between 1751 and 1796, including Andrew Krug who served seven years; and
the Reformed had 9 pastors between 1752 and 1815, including William Boos
who served a total of 15 years on two separate occasions. In 1980 the
Lutheran church at 527 Washington Street was called Trinity, and the
Reformed at 611 Washington Street had become United Church of Christ.

ROCKLAND AKA MERTZ: located in Rockland Twp. was organized by Lutherans
about 1747. They built a church on land of Henry Mertz beginning in
1747, and built a stone addition in 1764, at which time the church was
named Trinity. The church register was begun about 1749 under Rev.
Tobias Wagner, with baptisms recorded back to 1738. The name Mertz
Church first appears in a record dated in 1800. The congregation is
named Christ Church, and is located 5 miles south of Kutztown.

ROSENTHAL AKA BETHEL: Lutheran and Reformed congregations organized in
1761 in Albany Twp., only a mile or so from Allemangel Church, and they
built a union church beginning the same year. This building was rebuilt
or replaced 30 years later.  When a clear deed was issued by
Pennsylvania in 1806, the land was referred to as belonging to Bethel
Church. Many different hands made entries in the baptismal record,
beginning in 1762 for the Lutherans and in 1767 for the Reformed.
Located 2 miles west of Kempton and known as New Bethel, this union
church still had Lutheran and UCC congregations as late as 1980.

SCHWARTZWALD: These Lutheran and Reformed congregations located in
Exeter Twp. probably date from the early 1740s, but early historical
information is scarce. The church is not mentioned by early pastors
whose writings have survived, and there is no early register. The
earliest mention of Schwartzwald in the Reformed coetus or the Lutheran
ministerium is in 1793. Its existence in the early 1740s is known from a
diary entry in 1745 and from a 1754 letter by H. M. Muhlenberg who
states that he dedicated this union church in the first years of his
service in Pennsylvania. A communion tankard dated 1744 in the church
supports Muhlenberg's statement about the dedication date. A sturdy
building served the two congregations until 1811 when a new building was
erected. A register begun by Rev. William Boos in 1781 survives. It
contains some 3600 baptisms and 2000 marriages performed between 1781
and 1811. It appears that during much of the time between its founding
and 1793 pastors from Reading served Schwartzwald. The union arrangement
was dissolved in 1954, with the Lutherans continuing to use the name
Schwartzwald Church located 5 miles east of Reading on Rt. 562. The
Reformed are known as Schwartzwald Church of Christ, Jacksonwald.

SINKING SPRING: Organized by Reformed in Spring Twp. about 1793. Land
was given by a member of the Cacusi congregation and cornerstone of the
building was laid on 3 May 1794. Between 1812 and 1897 Lutherans shared
the facilities and this was a union church. In 1980 the Reformed
congregation was St. John's UCC at 600 Penn Avenue, Sinking Spring.

SPIES AKA ZION: Organized by Lutherans and Reformed probably in the
early 1770s. Questionable evidence points to a building erected by both
congregations in 1757, with an earlier building on the same property
supposed. Traditionally Victor Spies sold the property upon which the
building was erected, but no evidence of this is found. A more recent
building was erected in 1810. A clear deed was not obtained until 1818:
it was granted by heirs of the Penn proprietors. Located 6 miles east of
Reading, the union church dissolved in 1946-47, with the congregations
being called Zion Lutheran and Zion UCC.

TULPEHOCKEN: German families from the Schoharie Valley in New York
migrated in 1723 to the upper waters of the Tulpehocken Creek in
present-day Berks Co., 9 years before a treaty with the Indians formally
opened the area for settlement. Other settlers followed in subsequent
years. This settling was accomplished mainly through the friendly ties
one of the settlers, Conrad Weiser, had with the Indians. These resolute
farmers established or helped to establish six Lutheran and/or Reformed
churches in the Tulpehocken Valley, viz., Reed's, Host, Trinity (in
Lebanon Co.), Christ, Little Tulpehocken, and Millbach (in Lebanon Co.)

TULPEHOCKEN - CHRIST: A major Lutheran congregation in Marion Twp., 1/2
mile west of Stouchsburg, begun in 1743 by members from Reed's Church
who lost their property to the Moravians. It is this congregation which
is generally meant when the simple term "Tulpehocken Church" is used
today: the parsonage erected in 1771 and a massive stone church begun by
this congregation in 1786 are still standing. Two pastors served this
church over a period of 63 years who recorded some 3300 baptisms and
2000 marriages. They were Nicholas Kurtz and Emanuel Schultze.

TULPEHOCKEN - HOST AKA LOWER TULPEHOCKEN: Organized by a German Reformed
congregation in Tulpehocken Twp. in 1738, but existence dated from the
1720s congregation at Reeds Church in the center of the settlement when
the size of the settlement demanded establishment of additional places
of worship. They dedicated a well-built frame church in 1743. The name
"Host Church" appears in the register of this congregation as early as
1753. The congregation was served by intermittent pastors until
Dominicus Bartholomae was installed as their regular pastor in 1748. A
register survives begun in 1748, and a second register begun in 1753 was
used for about 100 years. In 1775 the congregation built its third
church of stone. In 1980 the Host Church was St. John's UCC, located 4
miles north of Womelsdorf.

TULPEHOCKEN - TULPEHOCKEN NEAR NORTHKILL AKA LITTLE TULPEHOCKEN:
Organized by Lutherans in 1742 after Reed's Church property was lost to
the Moravians. It was in Tulpehocken Twp., now in Jefferson Twp. The
term "Tulpehocken near Northkill" was used in the 18th C. to distinguish
this church from the larger Christ Church, Tulpehocken, near
Stouchsburg. The term "Little Tulpehocken" is a relatively new term and
is used nowadays to distinguish it from the same Christ Church,
Tulpehocken. A church register was begun here by Rev. J. Caspar Stoever
in 1742, with entries that went back to 1730, some of these early
pastoral acts having been performed at other locations. A church was
built at Little Tulpehocken in the 1740s, with record of a marriage
performed in it in 1749. A Reformed congregation began sharing the
facilities in 1853 and continued at least through 1980. It is located
about one mile southwest of Bernville.

TULPEHOCKEN - REED'S (RIETH'S): Organized by Lutherans between 1723 and
1727, at which time a church was built according to the earliest extant
register. Worship services were conducted during the earliest years by
laymen who read sermons written by ordained clergymen. Occasionally they
were visited by an ordained clergyman and recieved the sacraments. It is
probable that the Reformed used this building when they were visited by
an ordained pastor. Difficulties obtaining a regular pastor and
disagreements tore at the fabric of this congregation until the
Moravians moved in and at least two Lutheran congregations were
offshoots. While Moravian pastors from Bethlehem were serving this
congregation 1742-1747, they built a new stone church. Lutherans again
held the building after 1747. The earliest extant register begins with
entries in 1742 and is in the Moravian archives in Bethlehem Pa. The
next extant register begins in 1764. The term "Reed's" is used in 1795
to identify this church, probably named for Leonard Rieth who owned
property adjacent to the church property. This congregation moved into
town in 1895 in 1980 was known as Zion-St. John's Church, East Main
Street, Stouchsburg.

WINDSOR: Organized as a union church about 1758 by German Lutherans and
Reformed in what was Windsor Twp., now Perry Twp., its membership
composed by those who left the Moselem Church which was 4-5 miles
southeast of the new location. A register begun in 1762 survives. It
appears that an original building was replaced by a stone building in
1771, which in turn was replaced by a brick building in 1804. The union
church relationship was ended in the late 1960s, at which time the
Lutherans moved to Zion Lutheran, a new site four miles southeast of
Hamburg. The Reformed congregation became Zion UCC, two miles northeast
of Shoemakersville.

WINDSOR AKA LEBANON OR SMOKE: Organized by Lutherans in the mid-1750s
"near the Blue Mountains." The register begun in 1766 mentions
dedication in 1756, but the threat and reality of hostilities from the
Indians drove the congregants away for a time and perhaps their first
church building was burned. The congregation returned to build a church
which was dedicated in 1769. An entry in the church register for that
year calls the church the "Lebanon Church," while later it becomes
popularly known as the Smoke church. There is an entry in the register
for a baptism by a Reformed pastor in 1766, but the church was not a
union church until a third building was built in 1832. The union was
ended in the 1960s and the Lutheran congregation became St. Paul's, two
miles east of the town of Hamburg on old Rt. 22.

WOMELSDORF: Organized by Lutherans and Reformed in Heidelberg Twp. in
1792, with their building dedicated in 1793. The union was dissolved in
1915, with the Lutherans becoming Zion Church at 300 West High Street,
Womelsdorf, and the Reformed becoming Zion UCC Church at Second and High
Streets, Womelsdorf.