The above map outlines the area we call "Swede Bend West." The original Swede Bend community was near where highway 175 crosses the Des Moines river on this map. It was on the right-hand side of the river (eastward), and there were no bridges for the early years. Each of the towns shown on the left side of the river exists today, and each represents locations of early churches relevant to our story. It will be helpful for perspective to keep this map in mind for reference.
Already in the 1930's the chronicler of Swedish communities, O.M. Nelson, observes that some of these towns are declining in population and their churches declining as well. That trend has not changed in the eighty years following. Of interest is a current effort on the part of some of these churches to join together in a mutual effort they call "Countryside Ministries." Again, it may be helpful for perspective to take a look at this effort which is well-documented on the web at countrysidecoop.org . Here are some excerpts from that site:
Countryside Churches
* Calvary Presbyterian Church
* Faith Lutheran Church
* Fulton Lutheran Church
* Trinity Lutheran Church
* United Church of Christ Congregational
* Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church
Note these locations on the map:
Calvary is Fulton Pres. (Fulton is north of Callender)
Faith is Harcourt (Swedish)
Fulton Luth was Danish-Norwegian, north of Callender in a place called Roelyn
Trinity is Boxholm (Swedish)
UCC is Moorland (north of Callender)
Zion is Gowrie (Swedish)
"Countryside Ministry is an ecumenical cooperative ministry comprised of six congregations in the north central part of Iowa: 4 ELCA, 1 Presbyterian Church USA and 1 United Church of Christ. Our congregations range in size from 26 to 600+ members.
The majority of our members live in an area that is approximately 70 miles from north to south and 25 miles from east to west. It is approximately 40 miles between our most distant congregations. Our parish encompasses many communities. Communities in which we have congregations include: Barnum, Roelyn, Moorland, Gowrie, Harcourt and Boxholm.
We have an average worship attendance of approximately 400 in our congregations. For congregations to thrive, there should be approximately one program staff for every 100 people in worship. Our Ministry should have four program staff. We currently have two. Challenges to additional staffing include: vision, economics and availability.
The greatest joy has been the increased cooperation that has developed between the congregations. There is growing appreciation of the unique gifts of each of the congregations and the opportunities for others to benefit from those gifts. Attitudes toward ministry are slowly changing from seeing it as a necessity to seeing it as an opportunity."
Of the current members of this hopeful enterprise, the Harcourt congregation reaches farthest back into the days of the Swedish immigration. But before Harcourt, there was Dayton (see map). Here we repeat what O.M. Nelson has to say:
"Before 1850 Swedish immigrants settled near what is now Dayton. Among them was John Linn (or Lind) and his wife, Mary E. Sombers. He was born in Dödringhult, Ingatorp parish, Småland, May 29, 1826, and with his wife left his native land in May, 1849, spending 4 months and 11 days crossing the ocean. After their landing in America, they continued their journey by canal boat to Keokuk, and thence by team and wagon to Madrid in Boone county, Iowa, finally making their home in the southeast corner of what is now Webster county, before the federal survey had taken place, Linn took possession of a tract of land in Highland township, and was the first white settler in that township. Their daughter, Julia, who was born January 8, 1851, is said to have been the first white child born in Hardin township."
Dayton Swedish Methodist Church, surviving today as a Missouri Synod Lutheran Church
"In 1854 Mr. Linn embraced the Methodist doctrine, and organized a church of that faith, and three years later was authorized to preach. After that he divided his time between the care of the congregation and of his farm. In 1868 he became pastor of a congregation in Moline, Ill., and in 1874 was promoted to Presiding Elder of the Iowa district, removing then to Des Moines.
From the first settlement at Dayton the Swedish colonists spread out over the adjoining territory, and took possession of large stretches of Webster county, especially the southern part of it. The communities of Harcourt, Gowrie and Lanyon were settled mostly by Swedes, and Swedish farmers located around Burnside and Callender, farther north, while the city of Fort Dodge also received its quota of Swedish immigrants.
Most of the early Swedish pioneers at Dayton were Methodists, and a Swedish Methodist Church was organized in Hardin township in 1854 by Rev. Smith of Fairfield, Iowa. Thirty charter members were enrolled. They held their services in school houses until 1876, when a church was built. This congregation merged with the American Methodist Church of Dayton before the World war."
Grace Swedish Methodist Church and early Dayton
The Des Moines State Historical Society preserves written records of the Dayton Swedish Methodist Church. These confirm that the group was originally known as the "Webster Mission", an extension of what the writer calls "Swedeben" (literally "Swede Bone" or "Swede Leg", an amusing miscue on the name which also appears in Mission sources). He mentions a local preacher, John Peterson, as one of the early ministers. Such a common name would not justify identifying this as either the elder or younger John Peterson of the Des Moines Missionfriends, but the later mention of Loth Lindquist, who certainly was one of the Missionfriends, increases that liklihood. There was some fluidity and crossing of lines in those times. Conferences in 1885, 1895 and 1901 were held by the Swedish Methodists in Dayton.
"The Swedish Baptists established a Church at Dayton In 1856 with 18 charter members, but this congregation was dissolved many years ago." This is the only reference to the Baptist's work there.
Dayton Lutheran church and parsonage, still standing as the new church is built adjacent
"A Swedish Lutheran Church was organized in the Dayton settlement in 1868. The organization was accomplished in the Carl Gustafson school house by the Rev. C. J. Malmberg from Swede Bend, April 6, 1868, with an enrollment of 17 adult members. The congregation was first named West Plain, but when the church services in 1871 were transferred to Dayton that name was adopted. The first church was built in 1873 and replaced by a fine brick church In 1911. The congregation has now a membership of 394."
Today only the parsonage remains, the church site to the rear is vacant
The town of Dayton is served by two railroads, The Chicago & Northwestern, running east and west, and The Minneapolis & St, Louis, north and south. Situated in the center of a rich farming section, the town formerly enjoyed a prosperous trade, but like all small towns it has suffered lately from the drift towards larger cities. According to the last census its population is now 713, of whom about 75 per cent are of Swedish extraction. Some thirty of Its business men and professional men are of Swedish descent."
Nelson provides a roster of noteable persons originating in this region, and for those wishing to see the details, we provide this link to his text. Full text including noteable Swedes
Now we can proceed to Dayton's adjacent communities of Grant Center / Boxholm, Lanyon and Harcourt (again, see map).
The Boxholm Trinity Lutheran church as it appears today
Trinity Lutheran Church of Boxholm, one of the members of today's Countryside Ministries, was begun by members of the Dayton Lutheran church who wished to form a congregation more convenient to their location to the south. Their history traces back to 1886, when the group met at the Grant Center schoolhouse and was in effect a preaching station for the Dayton minister who served in this capacity for their first nine years of existence. In 1887 they undertook the building of their first church structure a mile east of the schoolhouse.
The old Grant Center Church and "priesthouse" before the move to Boxholm
With the development of Boxholm, probably an example of a railway station emerging as the communities' center, they made a remarkable adjustment. The building was divided in two sections and moved with horses into the town. In remodeled form, this church continues to serve the congregation to this day.
The Boxholm Swedish Methodist Church, another surprising survivor
Six miles west of Dayton lies Harcourt. Here is Nelson's 1930s account:
"Harcourt is a village, located in Lost Grove township, between Dayton and Gowrie, being connected with both of these towns by a branch of the Northwestern railroad. The Ft. Dodge, Des Moines & Southern electric line, running north and south, also passes through Harcourt. The population of the village, numbering 264, is nearly altogether Swedish... Swedish settlers located on farms in this vicinity in the latter sixties. The railroad first came through in 1881...
Three Swedish Churches are located at Harcourt. The oldest of these is the Mission Church which was organized in 1888. Prominent among the charter members were L. J. Gustafson, John S. Main, Emil Jacobson and Charles Andersen, They built the first church in Harcourt. Rev. C. B. Johnson was the first minister. The congregation has now a membership of 72.
The Harcourt Swedish Methodist Church also endures as present day United Methodist
The Methodist Church of Harcourt is an outgrowth of the Swedish Methodist Church at Dayton, seven miles farther east. Swedish Methodists bought a church building in Harcourt, belonging to the Evangelical Church of America (probably German -ed), and, in association with the Dayton Church, carried on work at Harcourt for a period of five years. The church was dedicated as a Methodist church June 21, 1900, and in 1905 the congregation was established on a self-supporting basis. The membership is now about 125, Since three years ago the services are conducted in the English language exclusively."
Faith Lutheran Church of Harcourt in the early days
"The Lutheran Church was organized in the Gustaf E. Johnson school house, January 17, 1891. Rev. J. E. Erlander acted as chairman and Rev. C. A. Hemborg as secretary of the meeting. The number of communicant members at the organization was 56, most of whom had previously been members of the Swedish Lutheran Churches at Dayton or Gowrie. A church building was erected the same year. The congregation has now 220 members."
This church is the Faith Lutheran church which belongs to the Countryside Ministries. Their own history states: "In 1888 forty-five of the Gowrie church members petitioned to be released so they could start a church of their own in Harcourt. The reasons for this split were the distance to be traveled, the impassible roads and often the bad weather. These circumstances made regular attendance impossible and they felt their children were not getting proper religious training. The Gowrie Congregation denied them permission to leave. The Harcourt group did not give up, and in 1891 they organized the Harcourt Evangelical Lutheran Church. During the first few years the church was served by visiting pastors and laymen until a pastor was hired in 1893." This account reports 151 current members, a pretty remarkable survival story.
Faith Church today with steeple features clearly identical with the early picture
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Harcourt Mission Church
Another survival story would be that of the Mission Covenant church. Nelson states that it was the oldest and that its first minister was C.B. Johnson. We know his name from his writing about the Swede Bend area in the Iowa Conference history. There he tells how the area Missionfriends formed a society based on the Jonköping Lutheran mission association and that society included Swede Bend, Swede Point, Lost Grove, Pilot Mound and other places. (Lost Grove is the name associated with Lanyon, but also near Harcourt.)
Harcourt Mission Church, then and now
Their first traveling preacher was Björk, then Hedenschough, Gören Norsen, J.F. Gillberg (about 1879-1885) and finally C.B. Johnson. Apparently by Johnson's time, the notion of permanent pastor had supplanted the Swedish colporteur model; Nelson has him as the first pastor. Nebraskans Andrew Hallner and John Peterson of Oakland are reported to have visited Lost Grove in 1876; these were early advocates of organized congregations and membership in the Ev. Lutheran Mission Synod. In spite of this, the Harcourt Mission church only formally organized as a congregation in 1888, according to Nelson. Given the resistance of regional Augustana pastors to Harcourt's Lutheran congregation, it is a wonder they did not all defect to the Mission group. Since both formally organized in '88, it is tempting to speculate that this event was actually a split in one and the same group.
Swedish-American Colporteurs of the Swede Bend Mission Society
C.A. Björk, H. Blom and G. Norsen
Having mentioned Lanyon, we might proceed south along the rail lines to hear this report, again from O.M. Nelson:
"Lanyon is another little village in Lost Grove township, located in the midst of a Swedish farming community. When the Ft. Dodge, Des Moines & Southern railroad was built through the settlement a station was located at Lanyon, and a number of business establishments were started. The railroad was later changed to an electric line, and passenger cars rendered frequent service both ways over the road. But since the automobiles and trucks deprived the road of most of its business, the passenger cars have been taken off, and only freight trains are now run over the line. The nearest passenger station is Hope, about 1 1/2 miles southeast, mail for Lanyon being hauled from that point by truck. The village of Lanyon has about 100 inhabitants, all of Swedish descent. A half dozen business men still maintain their establishments. Gust N. Carlson is both banker and postmaster of Lanyon.
The only church in Lanyon is the Swedish Mission Church which was organized September l, 1877, with nine charter members. One of Its most active members has been Gust Burgh, who come to Lanyon from Ramkvila, Småland, in 1876."
Lanyon's design reminds one of Chicago's North Side Mission church
Nelson has much more about the people of Lanyon which can be read at the link to his text. It will come as a pleasant surprise to Covenanters to know that here was a town in which the Mission church was the only one in town! It is believed that the Lanyon and Harcourt Covenant churches are the oldest remaining congregations of that denomination in the Swede Bend area. ( Membership: Lanyon 56, Harcourt 78. We wonder if they considered joining Countryside Ministries? )
Before proceeding north and westwards, we must offer apologies to some settlements to the south. It seems we are repeating a tendency to overlook places such as Madrid (Swede Point) and Sheldahls which have good claim to parity with Swede Bend in history. Writers and organizers of anniversary celebrations seem to gravitate to Swede Bend, and the southward neighbors may rightly feel slighted. We have already mentioned that Linn, Cassel and the Dahlanders had located in this southern tier before going on to Swede Bend. Perhaps in connection with Des Moines their story can in the future be more adequately addressed.
The impressive Gowrie Zion Church
Traveling on westward on the railroad from Dayton and Harcourt one would come to another of the Countryside Ministries churches which dates to the Swedish immigrant period. The Zion Lutheran congregation dates from 1871 and originally met five miles southeast of Gowrie in the "Danielson schoolhouse." Here there may be opportunity to give some luster to the ministry of Swede Bend's pastor C.J. Malmberg. He is sometimes painted in dark colors due to the factional strife at Swede Bend going on during his ministry; and that even by his own Augustana historians. But at Gowrie his mission work was to meet with singular success. A church in town was constructed in 1881. By the time of O.M. Nelson's account in 1930, a $75,000 church has been built for the 569 communicant members!
Not only Lutherans were working their way along the railroad. Swede Bend Baptist pastor C.W. Broms also organized a congregation in a schoolhouse near Gowrie; the Melin school, in 1884. The little group built a church in town in 1889 and a parsonage followed.
The Gowrie Swedish Baptist Church
At various times the Gowrie Baptists shared their pastor with Swede Bend, but A.B. Nordberg served for twelve years. Iowa conference missionary W. Turnwall made Gowrie his home base in what might have been a last ditch effort, but the work was disbanded in 1931. The conference missionary model no doubt followed the Swedish mission colporteur style for the Baptists as it did for the Covenant founders.
The north-south rail route also spawned regular watering stations at the standard six mile intervals, and the Minneapolis and St. Louis line established one just north of Gowrie which was first called Kesho. The name was later changed to Callendar and it was home to an Augustana congregation organized in 1874. The new name prompts some speculation: Källander might be a Swedish name (wellspring land) with the soft "K" pronunciation. That has been anglicized as "Shalander" in the writer's home community, seemingly a better rendering than a homonym for "calendar" as it turned out in Iowa (if we are right).
The Callendar church
Finally, a station north of Dayton called Burnside formed the nucleus for yet another Lutheran congregation organized by pastor J.A. Christenson in 1895. The forty charter members were drawn largely from Dayton, a development no doubt viewed as a disadvantage to the latter group.
From the formative days of the immigration to the innovative techniques of Countryside Ministries today, Swede Bend gives illustration of enduring tradition. This is especially true in those church buildings from the early period which we have seen surviving today. And in the case of those Lutheran congregations moving to the LCMC, there may also be an enduring tradition of "marching to their own drummer."