Gol Lutheran Church
Sesquicentennial 1864-2014
Gol’s History: 150 Years of Christian Service
Pioneer settlement
Within a year after Indian treaties opened Minnesota to immigrant
settlement, an oxen caravan arrived west of Kenyon on June 10,
1854, with the families of Erik Gunderson Gunhus, Osten Oleson
Haugstad, Halver Halverson Odegaard, and Ole Nelson Skarie
(Skallet). Norwegian immigrants, leaving a land of narrow valleys,
bisected by rapidly flowing streams or lakes with mountains and
timber everywhere, were drawn to settle along banks of creeks and
rivers where they had abundant water and wood to sustain their lives
in this new land. These early immigrants chose the prairie townships
of eastern Rice and western Goodhue counties with rich productive
soil and timber, so plentiful it received the early nickname of
“Norwegian Grove.”
These pioneers brought with them their Bibles, Luther’s Catechism,
Pontopidan’s explanation, hymn books and devotional books. Before
congregations were organized, settlers were served by itinerant
pastors who preached and administered sacraments at meetings or
services held in private homes. With very few pastors to serve the
area, even as the number of settlers increased, it could be a year or
more between visits. So when a pastor did arrive, usually many
weddings and baptisms would take place.
As early as 1855, settlers who would later organize Gol held
meetings in the home of Halver Halverson, with Rev. Nils Brandt, the
visiting minister, preaching several times and baptizing children. In
1856 the early settlers built a log school house on a small tract of
land on the farm of Osten Oleson and Anne Halvorsdatter Haugstad,
later known locally as the Fyrand farm. This served both as school
building and church until the Gol church was constructed about a mile
west of Kenyon. Pastor B.J. Muus often conducted services in the
original log school building and parochial school was held there as
well.
Gol’s first cemetery just north of the school location is the site of
about 27 graves of early residents and Gol families, among them
Halver Halverson Odegaard, Ole Gunhus, Osten Oleson Haugstad
and his children, Anne and Ole. While the school building is no longer
there, in 2007, the Epsom cemetery was rededicated after Gol
member, Jacob Traxler, cleared brush and trees from the site for his
Eagle Scout project and placed a monument with the names
engraved of those known to be buried there.
Other families and individuals who would become charter members of
Gol congregation arrived in the next few years. In 1855: Ole J. Bakko,
Knute Finseth Sr. and sons (Jr., Ole Herbrand, Anders K,), Mrs. O.J.
Bakko, Mrs. Halvor Kvi, Ole G. Gunhus and Kristian Halvorson
Dokken. In 1856: Kittel K. Finnesgaard, Knute T. Bakke, Syver
Halvorson Dokken, Hallstein and Kari Bakke. In 1858: Lars Aslakson
Brusletten, Otter Otterdokken and Ole Voerdahl. 1859: Fredrick
Grose, Peder O. Naseth and Ole Bratvold. In 1860: Ole Pederson
Springeti, Mrs. Barbro Hulebak with children Ole, Hans P. and Anne,
Asle Lien, Mrs. Astrid Gunhus and Mrs. Gunhild Finseth, Guro
Odegaard and Gunhild Anderson. 1861: Ole Lovhaugen, Ole O.
Sletten, Levor Jeglum, Sven Aalstvedt, Ole O. Sahl Sr. and Ingebrigt
Otterson.
The Norwegian Synod organized in 1853, just as many more
pioneers were leaving their homeland and emigrating to America.
They sent repeated appeals, asking for pastors to be sent by their
“mother church” in Norway. Finally, in 1856, the Rev. Bernt Julius
Muus from Trondhjems Stift, Norway, accepted a call to be first
residential pastor, headquartered at Holden, founding church for
many congregations in the Kenyon area. Among those signing the
letter of call as well as the constitution for the Holden Church were
Halver Halverson Odegaarden, Knute Finseth Sr., Herbrand, Ole K.
and Knute Finseth Jr., Erik G. Gunhus, Ole G. Gunhus, Ole J. Bakko
and Kittel Finnesgaard, all later organizers of Gol congregation.
This original Holden parish served worshippers from distances of
over 30 miles in all directions—west of Valley Grove, east to
Zumbrota, north of Urland and south to Moland. Thus, organizing
separate congregations from the Holden Church extended parish
became expedient.
Gol takes its name from the town and surrounding mountainous area
in Hallingdal, from which many of Gol’s founding members emigrated.
In his early records of ministerial visits and services, the Rev. Muus
Rev referred to it as the Halling settlement.
Gol’s organization and incorporation
Gol organized as a separate congregation in 1864 and incorporated
in June, 1880. Signers as trustees at Gol’s incorporation were Ole P.
Hulebak, Peder O. Naseth, Ole J. Bakko, Erik G. Gunhus and Stian
Gledie. Gol’s name reflects the Gol, Hallingdal, Norway heritage of so
many of its founding members. Gol, Hallingdal, was also the site of
the Gol Stavkirche, a worship structure built around 1200 and still in
use when some of the earlier pioneers immigrated to Kenyon. In
1885, a year after the current Gol church in Kenyon was dedicated,
the stavkirche was moved and reconstructed at the Norwegian
Folkmuseum in Oslo.
At a congregational meeting held in the summer of 1868 at the school
on the Haugstad farm, it was decided to build a church on its present
location, on land owned by Levor Jeglum.
Rev. B. J. Muus was architect designer for the church, one of the
oldest Gothic-style churches in Goodhue County. Built of locallyquarried stone, it was 50’ x 35’ with a 22 ‘by 20’ chancel, 14’ x 14’
tower and 16’ x 16’ sacristy (interior measurements). Over the 16’ by
16’ entrance were the tower, spire and bell weighing 600 pounds.
Building the house of worship was a long and arduous process.
These early settlers had neither modern farm equipment nor ready
cash to contribute to this daunting endeavor. However, with will and
determination, they moved ahead. Beginning in fall, 1869, when farm
work allowed, they quarried stone along the upper branch of the
Zumbro River in quarries owned by Gol members Syver Halvorson
Dokken, Sevat Sevatson and Peder Olson Odegaard. They also dug
trenches for the foundation that fall. Oxen and horses pulled the
heavily laden stone and slowly the stone pile grew. In 1870 mason
work began to erect the stone walls, three feet thick at the base
reminiscent of church construction in Norway. The master masons
and carpenters who superintended the work included Anders Kildahl,
Theodore Hammer and Bernt Boegseth, cousin of B.J. Muus, all of
Trondhjeim descent.
In fall of 1870 the roof was built; the following year the window
frames, windows and doors and ceiling were constructed. In 1872 the
interior was prepared with seats, temporary altar and pulpit. By 1874
Gol Church was completed with altar, pulpit, pews and 600-pound
bell in the bell tower at a cost of $8,200. It remains the oldest church
in the Kenyon area in continuous use for worship.
At the dedication June 21, 1874, the Rev. Nils Brandt delivered the
sermon based on Psalm 16. Because the dedication coincided with
the final day of the annual meeting of the Norwegian Lutheran
Assembly at Holden, the Rev. Ulrik Vilhelm Koren, vice president of
the Norwegian synod, performed the dedication rites.
The Rev. B.J. Muus made the closing remark, “God make this house
to be a blessing to us and to coming generations.” That was evident
in the growth of Gol membership; in 1897, Gol reported a
membership of 590 baptized members.
Those contributing money and labor to build Gol Church and
parsonage include: Svien Aalstvedt, Ole Aase,H.I. Bakke, Hallstein
and Kari Bakke, Ingval Bakke, Knut.T. Bakke, Ole Bakke, Lars
Brusletten, Ole A. Bratvold, Andre Dahle, Kristian Halvorson Dokken,
Syver H. Dokken, A. Evenson, Kittel Finnesgaard, Anders K. Finseth,
Mrs. Knute K. Finseth Jr., Stian Gledie, E.A. Groendalen, Fredrick
Grose, Mrs. Ole G. Gunhus, Halvor Johnson, Mrs. Anna Haugstad,
Hans P. Hulebak, Ole P. Hulebak, Mrs. Paul Hulebak, Levor Jeglum,
Mrs. Guri Lien, Anders M. Mundahl, Peder O. Naseth, H.H.Odegaard,
P.H. Odegaard, T.H. Odegaard, Ingebret Otterson, John Reberg,
Sander Rue, Ole Sahl Sr., Iver Skalet, Ole Sletton, Knut O. Solberg,
Mrs. Oline Tollefsrud, Melchoir Olson Troseth, Ole H. Vaerdahl.
The Norwegian words above the chancel arch, “Mit hus er et
bedehus” say “My house is a house of prayer.” The words behind the
altar, also in Norwegian, say, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will
be saved.” These words and the Roman numerals for the Ten
Commandments on the side panels of the altar were done in the
1970s by Professor John Maakestad of St. Olaf College. Marian Hogy
created the Hardanger needlework altar cloth. Frank Huberty
constructed the cross and oval shield inscribed “IHS” (Jesus, His
Son) on the beam supporting the narthex ceiling.
When electricity came in, commercial light fixtures replaced the
earlier kerosene chandeliers and the old fixtures were left discarded
in the attic. Myron Heggedahl, an electrician and Gol member, later
retrieved what was not broken and found enough good parts to put
together. He replaced the parts that held kerosene, bought new
chimneys and sockets, wired them and put one chandelier together.
Finally, the reconstructed and rewired chandelier was ready to be
hung in a central position in the sanctuary where it continues to
illuminate worship.
When the new parish hall was being built, Leonard Fyrand wanted to
make a chandelier for the new addition. He took a few remaining
pieces of the old chandeliers to a foundry and had some more made,
using the old ones for a pattern. That chandelier now graces the
narthex.
On April 24, 2009, an alert passersby saved the Gol church structure
from near disaster after lightning struck the Gol church steeple. Katie
Wunderlich Johnson noticed a glow, saw smoke and summoned the
fire department, Contributions from current and former Gol members
poured in to pay for the restoration; during that time the congregation
worshipped in the fellowship hall.
In 1881 Pastor M.O. Bockman became Gol’s first resident pastor; he
and many of his successors would serve also Moland Lutheran
Church, southwest of Gol. From 1960 to 1996, Gol and Grace
Lutheran Church, Nerstrand, were a parish, beginning with the
pastorate of Vernon Jensen and ending with that of Stephen Cruys.
In 1881 the parsonage was built, also of stone, at a cost of $3,500.
Pastor Bockman lived there until 1886 when he left to become
president of the newly established Anti-Missourian theological
seminary, part of St. Olaf School (later St. Olaf College.)
The parsonage continued as home for Gol pastors through the mid1990s. Pastor Stephen Cruys and his family were the last to live
there. On Oct. 23, 1995, the parsonage was sold and became a
private residence.
In 1928 the Guild Hall (parish hall) was built and dedicated at a cost
of $1,200. It included a main auditorium, kitchen and full basement
and was used for Sunday School, Luther League, Ladies Aid, social
activities and bazaars. In the early 1970s Gol members discussed
updating facilities to meet current needs. They decided that
remodeling the Guild Hall would not work, that it would be better to
build a new, fully accessible parish hall. The Guild Hall was moved
and converted into a family residence.
Groundbreaking took place in the fall of 1974, with building completed
and dedicated in 1976 at cost of $80,000. The parish hall contains a
large open room and hall upstairs, four classrooms and assembly
area downstairs. In the hall hang two quilts completed by Gol women,
one sewn in 1903, the other completed in 1989.
Ladies Aid
Gol Ladies Aid organized in 1881 in the newly built parsonage with
Mrs. M.O. (Leonharda) Bockman elected president. Its major
objective was to provide additional financial support for the church
and its mission through cash collections and auctions of wearing
apparel made by its energetic members.Meetings held regularly in
homes of members opened with scripture reading and prayer and
much of the time was spent in sewing, quilting or knitting.
The heritage of meeting the spiritual needs of its members and
supporting the missions of the church continues strong to the present.
Continuing the heritage from generations past, women dedicate
hundreds of hours to handcraft beautiful warm quilts from donated
materials, cutting the pieces, tying and stitching them as gifts to
celebrate weddings, baptisms and other special milestones in the
lives of Gol members.
Many quilts also go to those in need through the Marie Sandvik
Center, Owatonna Crisis Center, Sunset Home and other community
resources and agencies. Quilts, food, clothing and other gifts are
provided for holiday distribution through Goodhue County social
services. Quilts also presented with warmth and love from Gol
members with special ceremonies celebrate baptisms, weddings,
graduations and other significant milestone events.
Mother-daughter teas, salad luncheons, Advent by Candlelight events
and Bible study fellowship nurture friendships and spiritual growth.
A great deal of credit goes to Gol’s church women for the continued
success of the church and its ministries. They serve the church and
the community, setting up communion and changing paraments,
paying for church furnishings, providing financial support for college
students and supporting various charities, in part through proceeds
from the fall harvest luncheon.
Through this all, they live out affirmatively that worship doesn’t end on
Sunday, as they extend their Christian way of life to others.
Music
Gol’s choir was organized in the 1880s by one of its earliest pastors,
the Rev. K.O. Lundeberg, followed by Pastor Simundson, Mrs.
Mathilda Finseth-Roseland, Edward Livingston, Conrad Engelstad,
but particularly Paul Hulebak, long-time and celebrated Gol choir
director. Song services were held regularly; F. Melius Christianson
from St Olaf College attended one particularly memorable service
with an augmented choir of nearly 60 voices from Gol, Holden,
Kenyon and Moland.
For a number of years in the past, a junior choir flourished under
direction of Sonia Gunhus, Rosella Overby Strandemo and later Deb
Quaale.
The Gol Singers, who regularly provide music for worship services,
continue a long heritage of ladies’ choruses at Gol, organized by
Janice Gunhus and continued under direction of Ileen Almen and
more recently, Sarah Overby Jystad.
Before the advent of church organs, the school teachers would often
lead congregational singing. Among organists were Mrs. Mathilda
Finseth-Roseland, Mrs. Anna Finseth-Haugene, Annetta Finnesgaard
(who gave Gol its first electric organ), Mrs. Evelyn Danielson
Gunderson, Myrtle Nelson, Isabel Radtke, Janice Gunhus. Diane
Baker and Ileen Almen. Hunter Walker and Sarah Overby Jystad,
along with the Gol Singers, currently lead church service music.
The pipe organ, built in the 1930s, came from St. John’s Lutheran
Church, Shakopee, when they put in a new organ. Gol’s older reed
organ, lent forty years ago to a Hayward, Minnesota, church, has
returned and rests in the alcove in the narthex.
Christian Education
One of the oldest and most active efforts of the early church was the
parochial school, held at first in various farm houses, later in the
country schools during the summer, to offer religious education.
Children would walk sometimes many miles to attend school all day.
While regular Sunday school later replaced the parochial school as
the source of such Christian education for children, the summer
vacation Bible School, offered in cooperation with other Kenyon area
churches, echoed some of the parochial school spirit and intention.
Every year the Sunday School has presented an inspiring Christmas
program under direction of capable and committed Sunday School
teachers, including Janice Gunhus. For the last several years the
confirmation class of Hunter Walker, Sydney Warner and Sydney
Way have used their talents to write and perform the Christmas
program. One tradition that has carried on through the years is to
present children and adults with a bag of hard candies, peanuts and
an apple after the program.
Luther League
Parents and families have always been involved with activities of
youth in the church, beginning with Luther League family nights and
occasional ice cream socials. Later, parent advisors and youth would
meet for Bible studies, games and other activities or at times go on
overnight camping trips.
From the 1960s into the 1990s, youth would participate in devotions
and Bible study, play games and enjoy food at overnight lock-ins at
the church. To help them understand why they believe what they
believe and strengthen the faith they grew up in, Diane Hagen,
pastor’s wife, helped to encourage study and experience of varied
religions, including visits to a Buddhist temple, Jewish synagogue and
Holocaust Museum.
In the later years the youth had special projects such as Christmas
caroling, assembling and delivering fruit baskets to shut-ins, as well
as packing meals for Feed My Starving Children. They have also
prepared and served meals for such organizations as Ruth’s House
in Faribault, the Dorothy Day House and the Ronald McDonald
House in Rochester. Some have participated in mission trips with
several Kenyon area interns. Every year they serve an Easter brunch
for the congregation.
Cemetery
In the spacious and well-kept graveyard adjoining the church rest the
pioneers, their descendants and other members, including many war
veterans. Margit Finseth, 1788-1874, was the first woman and Halvor
Dokken, 1795-1873, the first man to be buried there.
Pastors and servants laid to rest there include Pastor K. O.
Lundeberg, Pastor S.O. Simundson, Pastor Otto A.Jacobson and
Pastor V.A. Jensen, as well as Prof. Ingebright F. Grose, church
college professor. In 1948 a monument in the cemetery at the front of
the church was dedicated, honoring the service of Gol’s second
pastor, Dr. Marcus O. Bockman, later president of United and Luther
Theological Seminary.
The Gol Lutheran Cemetery Association incorporated in 1960 and
continues to maintain the tradition of well-kept grounds respecting the
memory of all who lie there in rest.
Called to Christian service
Gol members called to ministry include pastors Edmore Fyrand,
Elmer Melchoir Berg, Melvin and Sigurd Simundson and Olai O.
Sletten.
Reflection on Gol’s heritage
Gol’s heritage of firm faith, mission, service and hospitality is evident
through the vigorous commitment of Gol members, past and present,
furthering the ministry of the church through their time, talents and
resources. Gol may be small, but it fulfills meaningful ministry in many
ways including the chaplain ministry at the Kenyon Sunset home and
response to Lutheran Disaster relief efforts. Gol is one of eight area
rural congregations contributing directly to the formation and
education of future ELCA pastors through the Kenyon Area
Internship Program through the Luther Seminary intern program,
which is headquartered at Holden, founding church for many
congregations in the Kenyon area.
Gol continues as a small, vibrant, outreaching congregation
abounding with dedicated disciples. We welcome all to share and
extend this heritage in vibrant ways as we move ahead with God’s
guidance.
Soli Deo Gloria
Pastors serving Gol congregation
1859-1880: B.J. Muus
1880-1889 Marcus O. Bockman
(1887-1889) M.O. Andenaes
1889-1895 Knut.O. Lundeberg
1886-1923 Simund.O.
Simundson
1923-1926 David Svennungson
1926-1946 Otto Jacobson
1946 1952 Virgil C. Hougen
1952-1959: Victor F. Larson
1959-1960 Herman.S. Bly
1960-1972 Vernon A. Jensen
1973-1992 John H. Hagen
1992-1992 Wallace B. Obinger
1993-1995 Stephen G. Cruys
1995-1996: Otto J.Reitz
1995-1999 Lloyd S. Thorsen
1999-2002 John Heile
2002: Otto Reitz
2002-2005: Keith E.O.
Homstad
2005-2009: Dan Dimmick
2009-present: Marvin Kormann
Gol’s 150th anniversary history has been compiled by Carol Fyrand
Lacey, great-granddaughter of Anne Halvorsdatter Haugstad, one of
Gol’s founding members. Details for this history are drawn from
earlier histories, notably Paul Hulebak’s history for Gol’s Centennial
which was edited by Rev. S. O. Simundson, as well as interviews and
accounts by current and former members.) Joseph Shaw’s biography,
Bernt Julius Muus, (Norwegian-American Historical Association,
1999) provided additional information about early Gol history and its
founder, B.J. Muus.