Our History
The Alto Reformed Church was organized as a church in 1855. Some early history indicates that in 1845, Albert Meenk was the first settler in the area. He arrived from the Netherlands to worship God without government interference. Ten more families arrived the next year, and they gathered in a house to worship. Seven more families arrived in 1847. Church services were held in various living rooms and grew quickly into the Reformed Church of Alto. A 20 x 28 ft. log church was built in 1847, and in 1848, the church’s first pastor, Rev. Baay arrived from the Netherlands to lead the pioneers in worship. For his services Rev. Baay received potatoes, wheat and other products of the field, as well as free-will offerings to supplement his salary.
A new church was erected in 1857 on five acres of land donated by a few members of the congregation.
The current church is built in English style architecture, with it’s octagonal auditorium and rolling partitions, was erected in 1898 at a cost of about $8,000. It was described in the writings as “certainly one of the most attractive rural church buildings in the whole state”. This building is still our main area of service.
In 1924, it was decided that two services a month would be conducted in English rather than Dutch. Three years later, one service each Sunday was conducted in the language of the new country. The last Dutch service was a communion service held on December 30, 1945.
Additions and renovations to the original church building have been made to accommodate the growth of the church. In 1968 the north wing of church was added to seat 225 more people. It included room in the basement for 10 Sunday School rooms. In 1997 an elevator was installed to make it handicap accessible. In 2002 it was voted on to add an addition for a larger entry way, bathrooms on the main floor, offices in the front leaving the old offices and consistory room open for more Sunday School space and a larger Youth Room to accommodate our growing youth ministry.
The Church celebrated the 100th anniversary of its original church building on Saturday, August 8th, 1998. A time capsule, which had been placed in a cornerstone of the building back in 1898, was opened with much anticipation.
God has blessed the efforts of our forefathers and pastors who gave us a rich foundation built on Jesus Christ. From a small beginning the ARC has grown into one of the largest rural churches in the R.C.A. We have a rich history, but we cannot live in the past. We must move ahead, confident that God will continue to bless our efforts to promote the Kingdom of Christ in this community.
A new church was erected in 1857 on five acres of land donated by a few members of the congregation.
The current church is built in English style architecture, with it’s octagonal auditorium and rolling partitions, was erected in 1898 at a cost of about $8,000. It was described in the writings as “certainly one of the most attractive rural church buildings in the whole state”. This building is still our main area of service.
In 1924, it was decided that two services a month would be conducted in English rather than Dutch. Three years later, one service each Sunday was conducted in the language of the new country. The last Dutch service was a communion service held on December 30, 1945.
Additions and renovations to the original church building have been made to accommodate the growth of the church. In 1968 the north wing of church was added to seat 225 more people. It included room in the basement for 10 Sunday School rooms. In 1997 an elevator was installed to make it handicap accessible. In 2002 it was voted on to add an addition for a larger entry way, bathrooms on the main floor, offices in the front leaving the old offices and consistory room open for more Sunday School space and a larger Youth Room to accommodate our growing youth ministry.
The Church celebrated the 100th anniversary of its original church building on Saturday, August 8th, 1998. A time capsule, which had been placed in a cornerstone of the building back in 1898, was opened with much anticipation.
God has blessed the efforts of our forefathers and pastors who gave us a rich foundation built on Jesus Christ. From a small beginning the ARC has grown into one of the largest rural churches in the R.C.A. We have a rich history, but we cannot live in the past. We must move ahead, confident that God will continue to bless our efforts to promote the Kingdom of Christ in this community.
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The Town of Alto
http://www.wlhn.org/fond_du_lac/towns/alto/altochron.htm
http://www.wlhn.org/fond_du_lac/towns/alto/alto.htm#The%20first
The Town of Alto
http://www.wlhn.org/fond_du_lac/towns/alto/altochron.htm
http://www.wlhn.org/fond_du_lac/towns/alto/alto.htm#The%20first