Peace Lutheran Church, Friedenberg, Missouri
Re-discover the Historic Peace Lutheran Church Memorial
Experience congregational life of the 19th century by visiting the beautifully preserved Peace Lutheran Church Memorial (Hill of Peace) just outside of Perryville, Missouri.
This striking red brick church was built in 1885 by German Bavarians who first settled in Perry County in the summer of 1838 (before the Saxon immigration). Naming their town Friedenberg (Hill of Peace), the congregation worshipped in members’ homes until a log church was built north of Cinque Hommes Creek (south of Perryville) in 1846. From 1852 to 1885 the congregation worshipped in a church on the Frankenberg hill overlooking Cinque Hommes bottom. (Peace Lutheran Cemetery is still located at this site along Highway 61.)
Before regular services ended in 1980, the congregation’s membership extended from Perryville all the way to the Mississippi River opposite Chester, Illinois. Peace Lutheran Church continues to be remembered as the mother church of four daughter congregations: Immanuel Lutheran Church in Perryville, Zion Lutheran Church in Crosstown, Zion Lutheran Church in Longtown, and a Lutheran congregation at Point Rest (no longer active). Peace Lutheran Church also helped Lutherans at Ste. Genevieve organize a local congregation in 1867.
In addition to the church building, the Hill of Peace Memorial site includes a historic log cabin and modern reception hall (rebuilt after a fire in 2012).
The Peace Lutheran School building across from the church is a visual reminder of the high value placed on Christian education by the settlers.
The facilities of the Hill of Peace Lutheran Memorial are available for conferences, family reunions, church retreats, anniversaries, weekend campouts, or even a country picnic. To make reservations or take a tour of the memorial, please contact the Hill of Peace Lutheran Memorial Advisory Council in Friedenberg, Missouri 63775.
Contact Information
Friedenberg Lutheran Historical Society
Perryville, Missouri 63775
Directions & Map
From North or South:
- Take I-55 to the Perryville exit (Rte. 51).
- Follow Rte. 51 through Perryville to US-61.
- Turn right (South) on US-61.
- Turn left (East) on County Gravel Road 300, just past Rte. P.
- Turn left (North) on county road 304. The church is on the left.