History

                          Zion Lutheran Church

                                      Moulton, Texas

 

On April 6, 1874, Rev. Christian Geiger, a traveling preacher, came to Moulton.  He was the first Lutheran missionary of the Texas Synod to come to Moulton and gather Lutherans for worship.  On March 16, 1902,  August G. Mueller,  John Janssen, and John Go. Mueller along with others met at the Methodist church in the northern part of town (near the present day public school) for the purpose of organizing a congregation.  The Rev. Edward Bekeschus, who was serving the Lutheran congregation in Baursville, would be its first pastor.  The church was dedicated on October 2, 1904.

 

The Methodist Church in which they met was later severely damaged in a storm and had to be torn down.  The Methodist Church was never rebuilt.

 

Moulton’s Zion Lutheran Church became the base for nearby rural churches.  In 1927, members of Immanuel Lutheran Church of Baursville joined the Moulton congregation. 

 

The sanctuary has been remodeled over the years and Luther Hall was added to provide space for fellowship activities, classrooms and offices.  The church preserved the beautiful Gothic-style stained glass windows with their original German inscriptions.

 

Music has been an important and vital part of  Zion Lutheran Church since its beginning.  Currently, you will find Helen Chaloupka, organist, playing the majestic pipe organ installed in 1986.

 

On January 1, 2002, Zion joined with six other ELCA congregations to form the Tri-County Cooperative Ministries, the first cooperative ministry in the Southwestern Texas Synod.  This provides a sharing of pastors and resources to provide a long-term quality pastoral leadership for the rural and small towns in this area.

 

* Information above was paraphrased from the Church Picture Directory History Section Page3 (2005).