PLACES OF WORSHIP IN ST. LOUIS PARK

From the March 2007 Re-Echo

The SLP Historical Society has been researching the histories of churches, synagogues, and other places of worship in St. Louis Park. Information can be found at http://www.slphistory.org/history/worship.asp  If the church or synagogue has a website with a history page, we link directly to that site. Otherwise we have used material on file or provided by the organization, either verbatim or in a condensed form.

The oldest church in the City is Union Congregational Church, at 37th and Alabama Ave. It started life as Clarke Chapel, at the intersection of Wooddale (then Pleasant) and Excelsior Blvd. Its roots go back to 1870, when services were held at Pratt School, also at that location. In those days it was not unusual for a public school to be used for worship services while a church was under construction. Clarke Chapel was built in 1878, and in 1891 it was moved to its present location. The present building was dedicated in 1941.

There were also two early "community churches" that met the needs of the populace in north and south St. Louis Park. North Side Community Church has roots going back to 1920. In the mid 1940s, the heretofore nondenominational church became Lutheran. 1947 saw the name change to Westwood Lutheran Church. Westwood built a new building in a different location in 1948. The original North Side building reopened as Ascension Lutheran Church in 1956.

Brookside Community Church, on the south side, started with members meeting in a cottage in 1913. In 1915 they moved into their new church on Brookside Ave. It is unknown whether the church was originally Methodist, but it was certainly Methodist when it merged with the Methodist Meeting House on Salem Ave. to become Aldersgate Methodist Church in 1946. Aldersgate built at its present site in 1951. The little white church on Brookside Ave. was subsequently used by Christian Scientists and is now St. Dunstan's Episcopal Church.

In addition to these older churches, there was a building boom of churches in the late 1940s and early '50s that coincided with the home building boom and, of course, the baby boom. Many of the congregations have stories of meeting in a tavern, a bowling alley, or a public school before their buildings were ready. There was real excitement surrounding the establishment of a new congregation, finding room for the burgeoning population (holding Sunday School in the ladies room was not unheard of), and building an ample, lasting building.

It is not unusual for a building to be used by more than one church over the years, and several churches have changed their names. At least two churches seem to have come and gone - we are in need of information about Cross of Christ and Suburban Baptist.

Synagogues, of course, have a very rich and important history in St. Louis Park. The migration of Jewish families from North Minneapolis to St. Louis Park started after the War and continued in force throughout the 1950s and '60s. Two of the first synagogues to move to the Park were Beth El (1961) and B’nai Emet (1959). For more about the Jewish migration to St. Louis Park, see www.slphistory.org/history/jewishmigration.asp

If you have information about a church, synagogue, or other place of worship that you would like to share with the Historical Society, we would appreciate anything you might contribute.


 

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This information comes from a variety of sources: newspapers, books, yearbooks, phone directories, interviews, etc. Given the varied sources, we cannot guarantee that all of this information is correct, and welcome any additions and corrections. Please contact us with your contributions and comments.