Immanuel Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church, Kimballton Iowa
When the Danish Lutheran Church split into two opposing factions in 1894, those that followed the teachings of Bishop N. F. S. Grundtvig remained with the "Danish Church," while those following the pietistic beliefs of Inner Mission Society left to establish a separate church, known commonly after 1896 as the "United Church." In the Shelby/Audubon County area, the United Church congregations retained possession of the earlier church buildings in Elk Horn and at Bethany Church in Sharon Township; however, some of their members left to organize a Grundtvigian congregation in Kimballton. Left without a church building and lacking, for a time, the resources to build a proper church, this congregation first met in various homes in the community or outdoors when the weather permitted. In 1896 the members purchased land on which they built an assembly house, or forsamlinghus, to use as a temporary church and community hall. They also purchased a neighboring house to use as a parsonage. After the church was built in 1904, the assembly hall was used variously for church and community activities including gymnastics, lectures, and folk dancing and singing. The assembly hall and parsonage are still standing but both have been extensively modified through the years. The assembly hall has been converted into several apartments and has had two additions made to the building through the years.
In 1903 the congregation decided to build a church in the northwest part of Kimballton. The pastor at that time, Jens Gregersen, had come from West Denmark, Wisconsin, where a new church had been built in 1900 for a Grundtvigian congregation. Through Pastor Gregersen's influence, the two craftsmen who had built the church in West Denmark, Niels Hansen and Jens Rasmussen, were brought to Kimballton to construct the Immanuel Lutheran Church. Hansen, a Danish immigrant, drew up the plans for the church, modeling it after the design of the church in West Denmark, while Rasmussen worked on the interior features including the pulpit, altar, and communion railing. When the church was completed in 1904, both Hansen and Rasmussen returned to West Denmark, Wisconsin. The church that they constructed in West Denmark burned to the ground in the 1930s; however, historic photographs of this building have survived.
Following the split in the Danish Lutheran Church, there were only four Grundtvigian churches established in the two county area compared to nine pietistic churches. However, of the four Grundtvigian churches, that in Kimballton was the largest congregation and the most influential. It had a tremendous impact on the development of the Danish community of Kimballton, influencing not only the religious life of the community, but the social, educational, and political aspects as well. It was the only church located in the town and its presence attracted a number of recent immigrants to this community in the early 1900s to 1910s when the third wave of Danish immigration resulted in a boom for the Kimballton community. The influence of the Grundtvigian congregation can be seen in the one-time presence of a Dansk Folkesamfund, a social organization founded on Grundtvigian principles, the number of dances, Danish plays, lectures, and folk singing activities which were held historically and into the present in the community, and the summer and Danish Children's schools that once operated in this community to help maintain Danish cultural traditions. Danish language services were held on a regular basis in the Immanuel Lutheran church until the 1960s when a new pastor arrived who could not speak Danish.
The congregation built the assembly hall first, primarily because they lacked the resources for a larger church building. It has been noted that one can always hold church services in a gym hall, but one cannot do gymnastics in a church. Therefore, to meet their immediate needs for both a church and a hall, the congregation opted for the assembly hall. Their ultimate goal, however, was for the construction of the church building which they accomplished in 1904. This building, a large edifice that sits prominently overlooking the town and its hinterlands, symbolized the predominance of the Grundtvigian synod in this community.
Building Description
The Immanuel Lutheran Church is situated on a large open lot on a gradual hillslope overlooking the east half of the town of Kimballton which sits at the base of the slope below the church. The church is situated so that it can be seen from a distance in the rural hinterlands surrounding the town. The hill rises gradually to the west of the church, with the town cemetery situated at the hilltop. The church and a parsonage built in the 1950s are the only two buildings on this large lot. The parsonage is located to the north of the church. The lot slopes away from the church to the east and the south and is landscaped with trees and shrubbery. Before the parsonage was built, an evergreen grove was situated north of the church and, at one time, there was a horse barn on the northeast corner of the lot. That building is no longer extant.
The church building rises one story from a brick foundation. The frame building was constructed with a basement level, and the foundation rises approximately two to three feet from the ground level. The ground plan of the building is a cross-shape, with a rounded apse at the east end and a 3.5-story, square, central entry tower projecting out from the front (west) facade. This tower features paired pointed-arched windows in the lantern, with rectangular louvers between the lantern and the spire. The latter is covered with shingles which have been painted silver. The spire is also topped with a metal cross and has decorative gables with scrollwork screens at its base. A similar decorative gable with screen is located below the lantern and centered above the entry.
The roof of the building is covered with asphalt shingles, and the walls are clad with narrow, lapped board siding. The original corner boards, frieze boards, and covered soffits are intact as is the wide board at the water table. The side gabled wings have gable screens at their peaks and wood-shingled cornice returns. The windows are all pointed-arched Gothic windows with stained glass and simple hoods. The stained glass is a replacement of the original clear panes, although the paired windows in the tower lantern retain the original clear panes.
Modifications to the building have included the replacement of the window panes with stained glass, the replacement of the west and south doors with metal doors, the repairing of the front stoop and steps, the removal of the metal roof ridge cresting (although the original finials and cresting remain on the gables at the base of the spire), a metal chimney on the north roof slope, and the addition of a brick building to the north wall of the church. The latter was constructed in 1965 and is attached to the church building across the north wall of the side wing. This addition is one story in height with a basement level.
The addition is attached to the side wing in such a way that the original wall remains intact and visible above the brick addition. This addition is also banked into the slope of the lot, so that it is not highly visible from the majority of vistas of the church building and does not greatly obscure the view of the historic church building for the vistas in which it is visible.
The interior of the main core of the church building has been relatively unchanged through the years. The center aisle runs east-west and is crossed by a north-south aisle reflecting the ground plan of the church. Notable interior features include the vaulted ceiling, the ornate brass chandelier which is suspended over the central aisle of the nave, the varnished pine woodwork with egg-and-dart molding, the carved altarpiece and statue, the semi-circular communion rail in front of the altar, and the raised pulpit, although the latter has been slightly lowered from its original height. The altar and pulpit are ornately carved with various cross-like symbols. The curved communion railing is supported by turned balusters. A small center portion of this railing can be removed to allow passage through the railing. The Christ-like statue on the altar is a copy of the one in Vor Frue Kirke in Copenhagen created by the Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen. This type of statue was common to the Danish Lutheran churches of the area. The brass chandelier is quite elaborate and retains the original glass globes. It was originally a gas fixture but has been converted to electricity. Additions to the interior of the church have included new pews, carpeting, baseboards, four ceiling lights, and two ceiling fans.
Church as seen from a distance (1990)
Church and brick addition (1990)
Church (1990)
Church south side (1990)
Church and addition (rear) (1990)
Interior of nave (1990)
