God is with us in Word and Sacrament

Tuscola, Illinois

Immanuel Lutheran Church is a member church of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod.

The history of Immanuel Lutheran Church is the history of two congregations that united becoming one. Immanuel is the daughter congregation of St. Paul Lutheran Church, Macedonia, Illinois, a farming community located about ten miles northwest of Tuscola.

St. Paul was organized in 1875, when a large number of the congregation’s members immigrated from Germany in the last part of the nineteenth century. Many of these new American citizens later settled in or near Tuscola, Illinois. Consequently, Immanuel was founded in Tuscola twenty-two years after the founding of St. Paul in rural Macedonia on July 18, 1897.

These two churches did much of their work together, even sharing a pastor. Immanuel’s first resident pastor was Rev. Peter Clausen (1897–1900). During the years from 1900 to 1919, Immanuel did not have a resident pastor but was served by pastors from St. Paul, Macedonia, and Broadlands. In 1929 St. Paul and Immanuel merged.

Immanuel’s first church was built and dedicated in 1898. As a result of the merge, this church building was inadequate and Immanuel’s church building was remodeled and enlarged. Much of the remodeling material came from St. Paul, Macedonia’s church building. This larger building served the congregation well for many years, until in the early 1960s, new facilities were needed to accommodate a growing membership. In 1965 Immanuel’s second church building was erected on a five-acre tract of land on the north side of Tuscola, where it resides to this day. The parsonage was built in 1970, adjacent to the church.

Since Immanuel is the only Lutheran Church in Douglas County, it reaches beyond Tuscola to serve many surrounding communities.