St. John's Lutheran Church

Pierce County's first settlers, the county's 2001 historic buildings survey says, were German immigrants from Wisconsin who arrived in 1869 in its southeast corner. Local tradition holds that they could not agree where to stop: some wanted to go back to Madison County, others to keep going. Reverend Heckendorf settled it with a pole marked hader, German for fight, telling them to stay by it or go. The settlement kept the name, later respelled Hadar. The survey counted St. John's among just two rural churches it found in the county.

What the plaque says

St. John's Lutheran Church German Lutheran families began settling in the rich valley of the North Fork of the Elkhorn River in 1869, near what became the city of Pierce. These families established their own congregation on October 23, 1871, first meeting in a local sod house. St. John's was the first church established in Pierce County. The congregation met in a schoolhouse before building its first church in 1884. The present church was built in 1913. Many descendants of the church founders are current members. St. John's Lutheran Church History Nebraska, 2021

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• Old Willow Creek Bridge — 1.9 mi
• Gilman Park — 2.0 mi
• The Meridian Highway: From Canada to Mexico — 3.7 mi
• St. Paul's Lutheran Church — 12 mi