San Antonio, Bexar County
The 64 charter members of St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church included families who migrated to Texas from Germany in the 1840s. Organized on Dec. 26, 1857, by the Rev. Phillips F.Zizelmann (1824-1902), a native of Wurttemberg, Germany, this was the first Lutheran Congregation in the San Antonio area. Worship services were originally held in a schoolhouse. Pastor Zizelmann, who also founded a day school, served the congregation until 1860 and participated on March 5, 1860, in laying the conerstone for the first church building. The Civil War (1861-1865) delayed completion of the structure, but in 1871 a pulpit and an altar were acquired. A tower was added in 1875 and topped by a gilded rooster weather vane, which inspired the affectionate nickname, "The Rooster Church". In 1886, when a new edifice was built around the existing structure, the tower was extended and the rooster, which had earned more amusement than respect, was replaced by a cross. Because of street widening in 1927, the old church building was razed and a larger one erected. It was completed in 1932 to coincide with the congregation's 75th anniversary.