Bethlehem Lutheran Church (the present Fellowship Hall), was originally built as a nondenominational church by Dr. William Walker and his wife, Eliza, sometime in the 1850 – 60’s. The church was to be used for nondenominational meetings and other public affairs. Transient preachers and evangelists held services here.

The first service of Bethlehem Lutheran Church was held on September 10, 1933 and included a baptism. On June 21, 1938 the church and property were purchased by Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod from the heirs of William and Eliza Walker, and Bethlehem was established as a mission church. We were part of a tri-parish with Immanuel of Leland, and St. Paul’s of Good Harbor, MI. In 1951 we built our present sanctuary, and in 1988 we undertook a remodeling project involving enlargement of the balcony in the sanctuary. A second floor was added to the Fellowship Hall for Sunday School rooms, office space, a bathroom, nursery, and storage area.

During our existence, we have had nine pastors. As a member of the tri-parish, we started out with services at 8:00 p.m., and then changed to 8:00 a.m. Over the years we were closed during the winter months, but in 1988 we started holding services year-round.

Our Pastors have been:

• Tri-Parish:
  • Rev. Edward Schmidt 1933 -1956
  • Rev. Albert. E. Krueger 1956 -1963
  • Rev. Karl Weckwert 1964 -1978
  • Rev. Robert Butler 1979 -1988
• Dual-Parish:
  • Rev. Otto Brillinger 1988 -1990
  • Rev. David Loeschke 1990 -1998
• Single Parish:
  • Rev. David Loeschke 1998 -1999
  • Rev. Bernie Filbert 1999 -2001
  • Rev. Paul Schneider 2001 -2006
  • Rev. Daniel L. Krause 2006 -2013
  • Rev. Dr. Charles Webb and Vicar Daniel Dockery 2013 - present