Emmanuel (Immanuel) English Lutheran Church

Emmanuel Lutheran Church-Baltimore

Sources:

Church Website: http://www.emmanuelbaltimore.org/pages/history

In 1887, a small group of members of well-established German-speaking Missouri Synod Lutheran churches saw an urgent need to form an English-speaking congregation here in Baltimore. January 19, 1888, Emmanuel English Evangelical Lutheran Church of Baltimore was organized with ten charter members. The first English-speaking mission of the Missouri Synod, pioneered by a handful of worshippers with limited financial resources, set out to serve the Lord under the capable leadership of its first pastor, the Reverend William Dallmann.

In 1889 the old Brantly Baptist Church building at Pierce and Schroeder Streets, became the congregation’s first worship facility and was used until 1914.

Prior to World War I, a building site was acquired at the corner of Warwick and Edmondson Avenues in West Baltimore. On February 8, 1941, a new church structure was dedicated at this site.

In 1921 The Reverend Rudolph S. Ressmeyer came to Emmanuel Congregation and served as pastor until 1956. In 1940, under his leadership, a new constitution was adopted which eliminated the word "English" from our corporate name.

On October 23, 1955 a ground-breaking service took place under a new pastor, the Reverend George Loose, at our present location. The dedication of the present church building and the first wing of the school building were celebrated on April 7, 1957. The second wing of the school building was dedicated in 1962.

In 1957 the congregation began the first radio broadcast of its Sunday service at its new site, a ministry which has continued uninterrupted.

In 1990, recognizing the need for an enlarged gathering space to supplement the narthex, more classroom, office and meeting space, and improved handicap accessibility, planning was begun for renovations and additions to the existing church and school building. This work was completed in two phases. The first phase, carried out during the summer of 1999, gave us a new lighted parking lot and site infrastructure upgrading. Groundbreaking for the second phase, the building expansion, was held on April 29, 2001. These new and renovated facilities were dedicated on Sunday, January 27, 2002, in a festival service that also celebrated our 114th anniversary.

With the help of God, we have ventured forth with the same dedication, faith, and commitment as those who founded the congregation over a century ago.

Pastors of Emmanuel:

1888-1898 - William Dallmann

1898-1902 - C.A. Abbetmeyer

1902-1910 - C.F.W. Meyer

1910-1913 - Theodore F. Hahn

1914-1920 - Paul F. Bente

1920-1921 - John M. Bailey

1921-1956 - Rudolph S. Ressmeyer

1956-1969 - George A. Loose

1970-1984 - Walter G. Malinsky

1984-2002 - Robert L. Mordhorst

2004-Present - Martin J. Schultheis

Associate and Assistant Pastors:

1942-1945 - Robert C. Haupt, Assistant

1945-1950 - William VonSpreckelsen, Associate

1950-1954 - Rudolph P.F. Ressmeyer, Assistant

1973-1983 - Gerald H. Schader, Assistant

1984-1986 - Walter G. Malinsky, Assistant

1991-1999 - Thomas J. Krepps, Assistant

2000-2002 - Leo M. Richter, Assistant

Church Location

Emmanuel Lutheran Church and School

929 Ingleside Avenue

Baltimore, Maryland 21228

Phone: 410-744-0016