Steeple

Our Church History


St. Peter's Lutheran Church was organized in the city of Connellsville, Pennsylvania, in the year 1894 by the Rev. C.L. Orbach. A two-story house was purchased as the first chapel/worship facility in 1896 when the congregation was granted a charter by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

On November 28, 1898, the first pastor called to serve the new congregation of Slovak immigrants was the Rev. Martin Tomaska. In 1904 the congregation constructed a new church to serve the growing congregation on Porter Avenue in Connellsville.

In 1918 a number of members from Uniontown decided to purchase the church at 171 Connellsville Street in Uniontown. In 1924, after six years of conducting services at both the Connellsville and Uniontown facilities, the congregation voted to make the Uniontown location the center of its ministry.

In 1933 the first English service was held in addition to the traditional Slovak service. This two-language pattern continued until 1984, when the last full Slovak service was held.

1993 marked the beginning of the service of the present pastor, the Rev. Bernard Carl. In 1999 the congregation voted to relocate to a new facility on Walnut Hill Road in South Union Township. Construction began in June 2000 and was completed January 2001. The inaugural service was held in the new facility on February 25, 2001, with the official dedication being conducted on March 18, 2001. St. Peter's is now a member of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

burningmortgage
On Sunday January 31, 2010, a Burning of the Mortgage ceremony was held. Thanks to a generous bequest by Joseph and Olga Raymond who had attended St. Peter's for more than sixty years, the church paid off the mortgage and will be able to help many non-profit organizations for years to come.
(Left to right: Charlie Wolfe, Congregation Council President; Pastor Bernard Carl; The Rev. Sarah Lee-Faulkner, assistant to the bishop of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod.)

St. Peter's is proud of the ministry it provides for its members and the community and faces the future with confidence that our Lord will bless us with a great measure of His Holy Spirit.