Churches of Shawano County
Almon:
St. Peter's was the first church built of logs on land owned by Herman Kolpack, the first Pastor was Rev. Emil Stubenvoll. Located in Section 8
St. John's Located in Section 7
Angelica:
Many pioneer's and Menominee Indian's met for services in a log cabin schoolhouse, which was destroyed in the Peshtigo fire of 1871. In 1875, Mrs. William Upham organized the First Congregational Church in Angelica, at which a church was built in 1876 with lumber donated by her husband, William Upham who was a noted lumber baron. Rev. Dunlap a Methodist Minister traveled from Waupaca to conduct services. This church burned in 1921 and was immediately rebuilt and is now known as the Angelica United Methodist Church.
Angelica has five Cemeteries, Hillside (sometimes referred to as Thorvold Johnson cemetery) which was established in 1871 the same year as the great fire. In 1874, after the explosion of the Laird sawmill, the mill workers killed were buried on the knoll next to the Pottawatomie Indian trail. Also buried there are several Civil War Veteran's namely Jacob Erb, James Gordineer, George Frazier and James McQueen.
The second cemetery is called Rest Haven or Magee/Prickett. It is located on the south side of Highway 29. This cemetery was a donation by the Prickett and Magee families. The Prickett side was Catholic and the Magee side was Protestant.
St. Casmir's Was founded by John Hof's and together with the Franciscan Monastery in Pulaski St Casmir's was formed. It is located in Krakow.
St. Paul's
Cemetery is located north of Zachow on Church Drive.
Zion Lutheran Cemetery is on County F.
United Methodist
Aniwa:
St. John's Lutheran Church and Cemetery was organized in 1894 and incorporated in 1895, with Rev. Ludwig Schneider serving as the first Pastor. This church still stands and is in use with many renovations being added unto it. It is located on W17680 Church Road
St. Boniface Catholic is the oldest church to be organized in 1884. The church was built in 1892 and replaced in 1912 being built of red brick. 250,000 bricks were hauled from the Birnamwood Brick Company to build it. The cemetery St. Boniface is also called Aniwa Public and is divided on each side of County Road Z.
St. Paul's Lutheran was organized in 1896 and incorporated in Aug of 1896. The first church was built in 1897 on land donated by John Hohensee and was destroyed by fire in 1910. A new church was built that same year.
Although before the day's of public cemeteries people were buried on the family farms. We know of two family burials which were on the farm's of the Adam's and Bastel families.
Bartelme:
St. Mathew's Evangelical Lutheran, with the Rev. Emil Stubenvoll as Pastor, in 1906.
Church of the Wilderness was established in the 1930's on the Stockbridge-Munsee Reservation and still holds services today. The Church of the Wilderness shared Pastors with St. Paul's.
St. Paul's Lutheran Church being the second built in 1924, was known as the red brick church and was led by Rev. Lorenz who started out by leading services in the Augusta Miller home. He was followed by Rev. Wegner.
There are three cemeteries in the township of Bartelme, Mo-he-con-nuck or Munsee Community which is located on the Stockbridge Indian Reservation, on Mo He Con Nuck Road.
Highland which is now known as Bowler Community is located on Stony Curve Road and The Sawyer Family burials, which were in Section 13, but the graves were moved the Badger Cemetery, Town of Lanark, Portage Co. WI.
Belle Plaine:
St. Martin's Evangelical Lutheran church bears it's first records with the date of 23 Oct 1859. The first services
were held in the home of Carl Reisner. They first built a log school house where the present church stands and services were held there until the church could be built. Their first Pastor was Pastor Ruhland, a traveling Minister, from Oshkosh. The church was built after the Civil War in 1869 the landed was deeded to the church on 19 Mar 1868 by Christopher Retslaff, but it appears that burial's had been on a portion of this land dating back to 1866, with the death of Sophia Retzlaff who died in 1863, wife of Wm. In 1866, three small children were buried and one adult, John Klickman. In 1868 a baby by the name of Schoenrock was also interned there. This church remains active to this date.
St. Johann's Gemeinde, (Gemeinde; meaning community) now called St. John's is located on St. John's Church Road situated on the top of a hill.
Early history relates that it began to organize when people started to withdraw from St. Martin's to form their own congregation. The Pastor of that time was Rev. Peter H. Dickie, Pastor Dickie had ministered to many church's in Shawano County. He asked to be released in 1882.
St. John's has a nice Cemetery that is kept up very well, surrounded by farmer's fields it is nestled down in a sloping little valley across the road from the church. John Stibbs from what can be read on the tombstones was the first to be buried there on 11 Dec 1877, the second was Fred Wentzel who died 28 Feb 1878. In 1881 there was some kind of illness that killed 14 children in a few short months among them four children from the same family, Emma, Bertha, Caroline and Karl Feltz. It could not be found where the remainder of the Feltz family moved to.
Salem Evangelical United Brethren was located to the west of Belle Plaine Ave. The church was moved to Shawano and is now used as the Seventh Day Adventist Church.
Frieden's (meaning Peace) Lutheran Church was located at the crossing of Hwy 22 and Friendship Road which is now about where Witt's Sausage Haus is located. This church was disbanded in the 1940's and members joined the Christus Church in Clintonville. The cemetery associated with this church was called Friendship and is located on the corner of Friendship and Pioneer Road. Friendship as of 1991 is combined with Peaceful Rest Cemetery. There are over 52 U.S. Veteran's buried there including 12 Civil War Veterans.
Salem Evangelical United Brethren 1859-1928 Was located north of Belle Plaine Avenue. The church was moved to Shawano and is now the Seventh Day Adventist Church.
Birnamwood:
Congregational Church was first incorporated on 12 Nov 1888.
Trinity Lutheran incorporated 6 Feb 1892
St Paul's Lutheran incorporated 18 May 1899
St Philomena Catholic incorporated 10 Jan 1905
Eland Zion Lutheran Congregational was organized 13 May 1899. The church was built in 1901 with the Rev Lloyd Smith as the first Pastor. This church disbanded in 1959 and was torn down.
St William's Catholic Congregation organized 1912 with Rev. Father Koepel conducting services in the Kutchin building. The church was built 1913 on land donated by Michael Haulehan, St. William's was incorporated 4 Mar 1914.
Fairbanks:
Peace Lutheran Church was established in 1888, with the first log building being constructed in 1890. A newer building was built in 1917.
A Catholic Mass was heard in the Railroad House on Nov 27, 1880. The parish was established in 1882 with the first building constructed in 1883.
