GOOD HOPE EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH, OSAGE, JEFFERSON CO., OHIO

     Ohio was formed of part of the North Western Territory in 1802.  The first settlement made by white men within its borders was that of the German Moravian missionaries in 1773.  The second was that of New Englanders at Marietta in 1788.  The first Lutherans of Ohio, so far as we can learn, were the families of Gerge Ostertaag, Martin Ostertag, and George Bauer from Fayette County, Pennsylvania, who took up lands near Osage in 1800.  When John Reinhard came from Washington County in 1804, he found that five other German families had located in this community before him.  the first Lutheran settlements were made in Jefferson, Harrison, Columbia, Stark, Montgomery, Pickaway, and Fairfield counties, and their oldest church was Good Hope of sage, organized provisionally in 1804 and permanently in 1805.  In the  Lutheran Standard of January 29, 1851, John Reinhard gives the following account of this organization:

     "In the year of our Lord 1804, I and my family, in connection with three other families, moved to Jefferson County in the State of Ohio ..... Having no minister to break unto us the bread of life... we agreed to meet every Sunday for the purpose of mutual edification by reading, singing and prayer.  Soon after this the Rev. Father Stauch, whose former hearers we were and who may be called the father of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Ohio, visited and encouraged us.  He organized us into a congregation under the name of Good Hope, and the following brethren were elected as officers:  Balthaser Kolb, David Reidnauer, Andrew Alt, and John Reinhard....."

     This venerable congregation, first born among the Evangelical Lutheran congregations of Ohio, was founded by Pennsylvania Germans in 1804.  The first of these Germans arrived in April, 1800.  The official record shows that the permanent organization of Good Hope Church was effected by Pastor Johannes Stauch in 1805.

     The first families of this church were:  Andrew Alt, Martin Grimm, John Heits, Friedrich Cleckner, Balthaser Kolb, George Ostertag, Martin, Ostertag, John Reider, David Reidnauer, John Reinhard, Adam Zinder.  Since the church had no regular minister, John Reinhard served as the parish catechist.  Rev. Stauch gave them service every eight weeks.  Pastors Paul Henkel, George Forester and Andreas Simon vested them occasionally.  In 1812, Rev. John Reinhard was licensed ahd served them from that date until 1825.  He died Jun 6, 1861 and is buried in Good Hope cemetery.  The grave stones show that Martin Ostertag lived to be 84; George Ostertag, 87; Balthaser Kolb, 90; Andreas Alt, 82; Friedrich Kleckner, 100; David Reidnauer, 80; John Reinhard, 89.  A log church was built in 1807 on land secured from Martin Zwuedert.  Mr. Zwuedert, whose children spelled their names Swickard, was one of the Hessians captured at Trenton.  His services as a teamster in the Sandusky Expedition of Col. Crawford were such that he was given section of government land as a reward.  This land grant, signed by Thomas Jefferson, is still in the possession of the Swickard family.  He was a member of Good Hope until 1815, when he helped the Methodists to found Tabor church.  1816 was a bad year for the church as a question of land title was raised.  Up until this time the Reformed and Lutherans had worshipped in the old log church.  The Reformed moved the church to a new site near Shelly's school house, while the Lutherans raised a fund of $429.2, and built a small frame church in the cemetery.  The old record gives the names of the following persons as subscribers to this fund:  Mrs. Marie Adams, Andreas Alt, Benjamin Armstrong, Daniel Arnhold, John(n)? Bauer, Jacob Bender, Elizabetha Bender, Conrad Billman, Karl Brods, Jacob Eberhard, Petrus Haushalter, Heinrich Haut, Geroge Haut, Christian Haut, Jacob Haut, Christian Heits, Michael Heits, George Heits, Johannes Heits, Michael Kasmer, Friedrich Kleckner, Jacob Kneisley, August Kolb, Jnas Kraf, Jacob Kraf, Petrus Kraf, George Lang, Emmanuel Ludwig, Benjamin Mehbel, George Meyer, Jacob Moschrosch, Jonas Nothstein, Martin Ostertag, Christian Ostertag, Jacob Ostertag, David Reidnauer, John Reider, George Reider, John Reinhard, Joseph Roth, Gabriel Schweinford, Jacob Stembel, Paulus Sterm, Christian striby, Joh. George Wile, Daniel Zwuedert, Mrs. Maria Zwuedert.

     The following is a list of pastorates: Rev. Johanns Stauch, 1804 - 1812; Rev. John Reinhard, 1812-1825; Rev. James Manning, 1825-1839; Rev. Benjamin Pope, 1839-1843; Rev. Amos. Bartholomew, 1843-1848; Rev. George Baughman, 1849-1850; Rev. Dennis Swaney, 1850-1853; Rev. David Sparks, 1853-1859; Rev. James Manning (second term), 1859-1864; Rev. Jacob Singer, 1864-1869; Supplies, 1869-1878; Rev. A. H. Kinnard, 1878-1882; Rev. C. L. Holoway, 1884-1886; Rev. A. H. Kinnard, 1878-1882; Rev. C. L. Holloway, 1884-1886; Rev. J. F. Booher, 1887-1889; Rev. Owen Reber, 1890-1893; Rev. E. J. Meissner, 1896-1897; Supplies 1897-1908; Rev. C. E. Read, 1908-1912; Rev. J. C. F. Rupp, 1914-.