HOISINGTON — The historic church that was moved from its original home in Milberger, Kan. in Russell County to south Hoisington in the 1970s is on the move again.
That is, church owners Randy and Debbie Deutsch had planned to move it to its forever home on Corinthians Hill north of Barton Community College in Barton County around midday Friday, arranging for a contractor, moving equipment and contacting electrical companies to take down lines.
Mother Nature, however, didn’t get the memo. Tuesday evening’s rainstorm postponed the move to around Wednesday of next week, when the site dries out, Debbie noted.
“The mover is thinking he’s going to attempt it next week, but I guess Mother Nature has the last say,” Debbie said. “He told me that he would try and start again on Wednesday, because of all the prep work they have to do.”
Deutsch is in the process of collecting historical data on the church. She had a meeting with the Russell Historical Society on Friday morning.
A little history
When Volga German immigrants settled in the Milberger area in 1876, they brought their traditions with them, but little else. According to a record from the Russell County Historical Society, some lived in dugouts fashioned from prairie sod as they built their town.
A rural post office operated in Milberger from 1903 to 1911.
Predominantly Lutheran, the settlers established several churches. The first Lutheran church was established in 1885, north of town. A difference over doctrine produced a split in the congregation and another Lutheran church was built on the south side across the road. The two churches merged in 1969, becoming the United Emmanuel Lutheran Church, and a brick church was built that is still in use today. Today, Milberger consists of a farm implement dealership, the church building, a former bar and a few houses.
The church building built in 1888, however, was moved to Hoisington in the 1970s. Its denomination changed to Pentecostal, and hosted services for several years.
Deutsch, who also owns the Corinthians Hill Event Center and Cornerstone Interiors in Great Bend, said that owning the historic church had been a dream of hers for about 10 years.
“About five years ago, I approached the gentleman that owned it and asked if he would be willing to sell it,” she said. “Knowing what I do for a living, he was more than happy to sell it to me.”
The building has a special family connection. “That church was my husband’s maternal grandmother’s wedding location in 1889,” she said. “That family connection made it even more important to me, to be able to get it and restore it.”
Deutsch noted that the grandchildren of Hoisington’s Sadie Stalcup, who helped instigate the church’s move down Hoisington’s Main Street 50 years ago, are still in possession of some of the original church pews and the organ. “I wish that they would let me have those,” she mused.
The building’s permanent residence will be on the west side of the Events Center, on the south side of the pond. “That is going to be its forever home,” Deutsch said. “I’m writing that in my will.”
