92 years ago today, Pastor Hilgendorf of Belford passed away from a heart attack on his buggy ride home from the train station. A Nebraska Native - like me - he is buried in Seward, Nebraska, where I went to College. He served St. John's Belford as his first parish, as do I.
Of note, look at the number of pastors who attended the funeral. Also look how much he was loved by his congregation. Also, his gravestone spells his name Rudolf, but the newspaper spells it Rudolph. I'm going to guess the gravestone spelling is correct.
-Pastor Moline
 |
| From Find A Grave |
BELOVED PASTOR CALLED SUDDENLY
April 19, 1923 – Hankinson News
Death of Rev. Rudolph Hilgendorf Mourned by Legions of Our People
Probably no event in recent years
has so profoundly moved the people of Hankinson and the country north of this
city as the sudden death of Rev. Rudolph Hildgendorf which occurred Friday
evening. Stricken by heart failure, he
passed away in the twinkling of an eye, his friends unaware that he was not in
his usual health.
Deseased [sic] was widely known
throughout this section, having been pastor of St. John’s church in Belford township
for nearly 25 years, and was universally esteemed. Cut down in the prime of his life at the age
of 47 years, he leaves a grief stricken wife and little daughter to mourn his
untimely death.
For some time past his health has
not been of the best, but there was nothing about his condition that occasioned
any concern to his friends. A short time
ago he left for Omaha, Nebraska, to consult an oculist and arrived home
Saturday evening on Soo train 107 at 6 o’clock. He was met by Chas. Bellin one of his
parishoners, who by previous arrangement was to drive him to the parsonage,
five miles north of town. They walked to
the Green hardware store, climbed into the buggy standing there and started
from home. Mr. Bellin addressed several
remarks to his passenger and finally noticed that there was no response. A glance showed that something was wrong and
he turned the team and drove to the Lutheran parsonage, a short distance. Rev. Klausler assisted in carrying the
stricken man in the house and medical aid was summoned, but it is thought the
spark of life had sped even before this time.
An acute attack of heart failure was the immediate cause of his death.
Story of His Life
Rudolph Charles Hilgendorf was
born June 30, 1875, at Omaha Nebraska and was therefore 47 years, 9 months, and
14 days old at the time of his death.
His father, Rev. John Hilgendorf, was a pioneer pastor of Nebraska where
he had charge of one church for fifty years.
He also did field work for the Lutheran church throughout Nebraska and
in neighboring states; was in fact the pioneer of Lutheran workers in
Nebraska. When the subject of this
sketch was one year old the parents moved to Arlington. There his boyhood was spend and he was
confirmed. He entered Concordia College,
Milwaukee, in the fall of 1889 and graduated in 1895; entered Concordia
Theological Seminary, St. Louis, in the fall of 1895 graduating in June,
1898.
He was immediately assigned a
call to St. John’s church in Belford township, Richland county, and the
following twenty five years of his life were interwoven with the development of
that neighborhood. Before that time the
church had been served by Rev. J. Hinck of Great Bend, and the latter
officiated at the ordination and installation of Rev. Hilgendorf as pastor on
September 11, 1898. Zealous in the faith
of the Great Master, he organized a church at Barney a year or two later. At that time he also served some families
south and southeast of Hankinson which marked the beginning of the Lutheran
congregation in this city. He also
served the congregation here when temporarily without its pastor, once for
nearly a year before the present Pastor Klausler assumed the office.
He had also served for ten years
as a member of the mission board for the Montana-North Dakota conference of the
Missouri Synod and was a circuit visitor in the northwesteren[sic] part of the
state for that organization.
He was married June 19, 1901, to
Miss Sophia Lauppe of Nebraska who with one daughter, Verona, survives
him. Other surviving relatives are the
aged parents in Portland, Oregon; an unmarried sister, Amelia, a nurse with her
parents; Marie, wife of Rev. E. T. Otto, Omaha; Paul, pastor in Hood River,
Oregon; John, parochial school teacher, now assistant instructor of music at
the Lutheran Normal school in Seward, Neb.
A brother, Walter died as pastor of the Lutheran congregation in Edgely,
N.D., during the flu epidemic. The only
relative present for the funeral here was Rev. E. T. Otto of Omaha; other
relative from the far west will meet the body at Seward, Neb., where the burial
will take place Friday.
Impressive and beautiful was the
funeral service held at St. John’s church at 2 o’clock Tuesday afternoon. There were few dry eyes in the throng that
assembled to pay final tribute to their beloved pastor. Many in the assemblage he had christened, and
he had officiated at the marriage ceremony of a majority of the adult members
of the congregation, the kindly influence of his sterling Christian character
had been an untold power for good in the community he had served so faithfully
for nearly a quarter of a century.
Visiting pastors, present friends and former classmates were also
present. From the pulpit where diseased
had been a familiar figure for so many years, Rev. T. Hinck delivered an
impressive sermon, paying a deserved eulogy to his fellow worker in the faith;
Rev. E. G. Nachtscheim of Minneapolis, close friend and classmate, delivered an
address in the name of his class, of whom four were present: Rev. E. G. Nachtsheim of Minneapolis, Rev. H.
Faedtka, Appleton, Minn., Rev. H. R. Klemk, Osseo, Minn., Rev. O. C. Wolff,
Montevideo, Minn. They had been
classmates at college for 9 years and together in the ministry for 25
years. Other pastors present were Rev.
C. Ed. Mix, Kensai, as representative of the Upper Soo conference; Rev. J. C.
Nauss, Fargo, Rev. C. A. Schultz, Lisbon; Rev. O. C. Taege, Anamoose; Rev. C.
Heuchert, Stirum; Rev. H. W. Eggers, Gwinner; Rev. E. P. Gesterling, Wahpeton;
Rev. T. Hinck, Great Bend; Rev. Jul. Cloeter, Lidgerwood; Rev. J. P. Klausler,
Hankinson; Rev. W. Rohe, Summit. Many
were also present from Great Bend, Summit, Wahpeton and Lidgerwood. The men’s choir of the Great Bend and the
children of the parish sang during the service.
The casket was almost hidden by the many floral offerings. The pall bearers were the elders of the
Belford and Barney congregations: Wm.
Krueger, Wm. Neitzel, and Frank Tiegs of Belford, John Thiel, Louis Mindermann
and Carl Wittkop of Barney.
At the conclusion of the service
in St. John’s church, the casket was conveyed to the Hankinson Lutheran church
where another throng of old friends gathered to pay their final tribute of love
and respect. An eloquent sermon was
delivered by Rev. Jul. Cloter in German and he was followed by Rev. J. P.
Klausler whose long and close friendship with the deceased pastor made his
address touching and impressive. Music
was furnished by the Lutheran choir.
While the loss of their pastor
comes as a personal bereavement to every member of St. John’s congregation, his
circle of friends was by no means confined to the Lutheran membership. Scores of our people of all faiths and
various walks of life, counted themselves as his friend and sincerely mourn his
loss.
The remains were shipped to
Seward Neb., Tuesday evening where the burial will take place tomorrow
(Friday).
