Mission township doubtless got its name from the first
mission established at the head of Mission creek by Rev. Jesse Walker, in 1826,
who was the first white settler.
When the early settlers came to Mission
township they had no place to worship God. Many of the settlers said they should
build a church or a meeting-house.
In 1842 we find Elling Eielson
putting up a meeting-house in Norway, Illinois, on the site of James Ingle's
residence. This meeting-house was the first house built by Norwegians for divine
worship.
All of the country was strewn with timber in those days, so the
men just went to the woods to get the material. When the trees were cut down
they had to finish them off the best they could with an ax.
They were
then hauled to the site for the church and put into place. The roof of the cabin
was made of thatch or straw. The cracks between the logs and around the
fireplace were plastered with mud so as to make it warmer.
This church
consisted of two rooms with a fireplace in one end. The attic was a sort of a
hall, used for devotional meetings.
The building was paid for mainly by
Elling Eielson, who was the minister at that time. He traveled around from place
to place to preach. The minister sometimes stayed in this house.
Thomas
Orstad, deceased, from Strand, Iowa, who attended services many a time in this
building for divine worship, called it a "gathering house," or in Norwegian,
"Forsamlinghus." He said it was built of white oak logs constructed in Norwegian
fashion. It was twenty-four feet long, sixteen feet wide and twelve feet high.
The lower floor was fitted for family use, and the upper story for church
services. The shingles used for roofing this building were split out of blocks
of native wood. The seats in the assembly hall were planks of the same wood,
resting on blocks of the same material. There were also a few small windows. For
many years this was a place where those gathered who had any desire to hear the
word of God.
In the course of time, about 1848, the congregation built a
frame church about a mile from the meeting-house, and what became of Elling
Eielson's meeting-house is not known. Mr. Orstad and other old residents visited
the spot where this famous edifice stood on a hill near the present Norway,
Illinois, but there was no trace of it visible.
Elling Eielson was such
a fine minister that so many people came to his small meeting-house that it grew
to be too crowded and a new church was needed. The lumber for this church was
hauled from Chicago by oxen a distance of about seventy miles. It took them
several weeks to bring it to Norway. Fyguessan was one settler who helped build
the church, and Oliver Rosdial also devoted himself to the great task of
finishing the work on the inside and putting up the pulpit in the middle of the
front of the church.
In place of pews, which we are accustomed to, there
were chairs fastened to the floor. These were placed along the sides facing
toward the center. A small gallery was built. The church room was heated by a
stove, which was in the middle of the room.
Church services were held
here usually every Sunday. Norwegian was the only language preached for some
time. In the absence of the minister laymen services were held (Clausen being
one of the first laymen). A while after its founding, the people, both young and
old, had the privilege of attending Sunday-school. The first Sunday-school
teacher was Hrmon Osmundson, father of O. H. Osmundson, today a resident of
Newark, Illinois. The books used in Sunday-school were similar to those of
today: "Luther's Small Catechism," "Explanation," and the "Bible History."
Although there was no organ or piano in the church for a number of years,
our forefathers enjoyed singing the hymns from the song books, led by Andrew
Osmundson.
For many years Rev. Eielson preached in the church, which was
the Fox River church, and Mr. Rasmussen was the first minister; the reason being
that Mr. Rasmussen did not believe in laymen, while Rev. Eielson did.
Today this old Norway church is not used for divine services, but occasionally
the Ladies' Aid of the Fox River church meet there, and it is the center of
other social gatherings. The people of this congregation join in giving thanks
to Rev. Eielson for his blessed and great service in Mission township.
Extracted 08 Nov 2018 by Norma Hass from Stories of Pioneer Days in La Salle County, Illinois, by Grammar Grade Pupils, published in 1932, page 48.
| Lee | DeKalb | Kane |
| Bureau |
 |
Kendall |
| Putnam | Grundy | |
| Marshall | Woodford | Livingston |
