St. Stephen Lutheran Church, or Iglesia Luterana San Esteban, is a designated Milwaukee Landmark. It is in the historic Walker's Point district of

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

Dedication

Saint Stephen Evangelical Lutheran Church was dedicated to

Saint Stephen Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ''Stéphanos'', meaning "wreath, crown" and by extension "reward, honor, renown, fame", often given as a title rather than as a name; c. 5 – c. 34 AD) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first ...

, the first martyr of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

and venerated saint of the Church.

History

St. Stephen's was originally established as a mission church called ''Die Evangelische-Lutherische St. Stephanus-Gemeinde'' in 1853. It was organized by members of

Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church is a Victorian Gothic-style Lutheran church built in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1878 - then claimed to be "the finest church edifice within the Missouri Synod." Today it is listed on the National Register of Hi ...

of the

Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), also known as the Missouri Synod, is a traditional, confessional Lutheran denomination in the United States. With 1.8 million members, it is the second-largest Lutheran body in the United States. The LC ...

to serve parishioners located south of the

Menomonee River :''See also Menominee River'' The Menomonee River is one of three primary rivers in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, along with the Kinnickinnic River and Milwaukee River. Description Named after the Menomonee (also spelled Menominee) Indians, the word w ...

, and quartered in an old abandoned school building near 3rd and National Avenue. The congregation was officially founded in 1854 and was composed mostly of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

immigrants. In 1857, the congregation moved to 5th and Mineral Street, where a church was built for $2,200 plus $650 for land. An accompanying school building was erected in 1865. Due to an increase in membership, a larger building was soon needed. The old frame church was sold to St. Stanislaus Catholic Church for $4,500 and moved to a new location. A lot on the corner of 5th and Scott Street was purchased for $1,900 and a new church built in 1866 for $20,000. A tower was later added in 1879, containing a four faced clock installed by E. Howard & Co. of Boston, Massachusetts. With the need for extensive repairs looming by 1901, it was decided to raze the building while incorporating the tower into a new structure. Architects Otto Uehling and George Griswold drew up plans for the present church building which cost $43,000 to construct. It is of

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

design and built using red brick trimmed with limestone. The tower was also resurfaced in these materials. The church was one of the first steel-masonry structures in Milwaukee. In July 1902, the first organ was dedicated. The present organ, a three-manual Wangerin organ with 2,100 pipes, was installed in 1941. After more than a year of renovation and the installation of a new console, the organ was re-dedicated in 2004 as part of the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the congregation. An influx of Mexican immigrants to the area began in the 1930s during a labor shortage experienced by many of the local tanneries. This, along with the German-American population following the

urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city." Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted growt ...

of the 1950s, helped the area to become predominantly

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

. In 1964, St. Stephen's was designated a Spanish Mission Church and began offering services in Spanish. Services in English had been introduced in the 1920s.

References

External links

*{{Official website, https://saintstephenlc.com/
LCMS congregation profile80th Anniversary of St. Stephen's
Landmarks in Wisconsin Churches in Milwaukee German-American culture in Milwaukee Lutheran churches in Wisconsin 19th-century Lutheran churches in the United States Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod churches