To the north of Lindsborg lie some of the oldest and most serene sites from the immigrant years. The first Mission church was out here in the country; Rose Hill. Today its cemetery is marked by surrounding evergreens and within their shelter a holy silence prevails.

No building survives; nature provides the sanctuary

Westward from Rose Hill rise the Smoky Hills themselves, and at their base Smoky Hill cemetery, where lie such pioneers as the mother of Olof Olson and their chronicler, Emory Lindquist. Just above this place stands a relic of the Roosevelt works projects; a lookout called Coronado Heights, providing some panoramic views of the valley.

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Northward, the little town of Smolan and its surrounding countryside were home to Covenant educator and president from 1932 to 1958, Theodore W. Anderson. Neither Lutheran nor Mission churches survive there, though the Covenant cemetery has a marker befitting its significance.

One group of Dalarna immigrants with typical nonconformity organized an independent Lutheran congregation to the west of the bluffs. Their Falun church eventually joined Augustana, but the building is one of the older ones and more representative of the churches as they existed at the turn of the twentieth century.

In a recent Charles Lamb interview, historians Charles Norton Smith and Doug Brinkley agreed that "history tours" have become a preferred method of teaching. Some things are revealed only in this way. The pictures below disclose some Smoky Hills secrets. When queried about the role of petroleum assets to the valley churches, local sources recalled that the Lindsborg Baptist and Messiah Lutheran churches were built largely with oil money. Their comments also suggested that Messiah's founding was perhaps less than collegial with their Bethany neighbors, something written histories often omit.

Rich resources from the soil, and from beneath the soil
(Coronado Heights on the horizon)

The early Lindsborg Swedish Baptist church, and later benefactor of oil wealth
The vacant church shares a corner with the Covenant church and C.R. Carlson's former residence

Another oil benefactor, Messiah Lutheran at the old south portal to Bethany College

The same portal pillar "back in the day"

Of Bethany College there is simply too much to tell. Emory Lindquist's book, "Bethany in Kansas" would be a good place to start. All that such a school means to its people might be evoked by the tree-lined lane above, leading to "Old Main", now but a memory. The distinctive brown color of the Kansas limestone is a signature of Smoky Valley.

Apart from these pictures, little is known about the Free Mission church in Lindsborg. Of the several Nelsons among Free ministers, this one eludes further knowledge. It is not even known whether Fredrik Franson played a part in this congregation in Lindsborg, but since Glen Gustafson's website provided this photo taken in Lindsborg, we presume that he did. No story is complete without Franson.

For the Mission church people, a second church was soon built in the town of Lindsborg. Rapid growth soon dictated building a larger structure, surely one of the most distinctive in style among its peers but one plagued by structural faults that cut short its life.

Finally, the Covenant church today. The 2010 Midwest Conference was the occasion for this visit and, at one proud moment, the venue for display of some images from the Swedish Immigrant Churches website!