Clearwater Evangelical Lutheran Church

Clearwater Evangelical Lutheran Church
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The church viewed from the southwest
Nearest city	Oklee, Minnesota
Coordinates	47°55′41″N95°46′27″W / 47.92806°N 95.77417°W / 47.92806; -95.77417
Area	2.6 acres (1.1 ha)
Built	1912
Built by	Aslak and Oscar Nesland [1]
Architectural style	Gothic Revival [2]
NRHP reference No.	99001386 [3]
Added to NRHP	November 18, 1999

Clearwater Evangelical Lutheran Church is a rural former place of worship near the Clearwater River in Equality Township, Red Lake County, Minnesota. It served a congregation of Norwegian Americans which organized in 1898 under the name Clearwater Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. ^[4] Before building the church, they met in homes and log schoolhouses. ^[5]

The cornerstone of the church was dedicated in 1911 and the building was completed 1912 but not wired for electricity until 1949. ^[4] Norwegian was taught in the church school until 1940 and into the 1950s some worship services were entirely in Norwegian. ^[4] The church closed in 1988 due to declining membership. ^[5] Together with the adjacent cemetery, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. ^[3]

References

1. Lathrop, Alan K. (2003). Churches of Minnesota: An Illustrated Guide. University of Minnesota Press. p. 264. ISBN   9781452904405.
2. Nord, Mary Ann (2003). The National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota . Minnesota Historical Society. ISBN   0-87351-448-3.
3. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
4. "Equality Township" (PDF). Histories of the Townships of Red Lake County from "A History of Red Lake County". Red Lake County Historical Society. 1976. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
5. "History Tour Stop #10: Clearwater Church". History of Red Lake County, Minnesota. Red Lake County Historical Society. Retrieved January 3, 2016.