A Brief History

St. Jacob’s Lutheran Church was founded in 1847 by a small group of residents weary of having to travel to North Canton by horse and buggy in order to worship. The church’s predominantly German-speaking worshippers name their newly formed congregation St. Jacob’s – German for St. James, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus. Originally a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Ohio and Adjacent States, St. Jacob’s is now a part of the successor body that is the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

In the early years, St. Jacob’s was a Union congregation and shared a one-story building with a congregation of the Reformed Church. Because eighty percent of Stark County’s residents in the early 1800s were of German descent, that was the language spoken in most area Lutheran and Reformed churches. By custom, men sat on one side of the sanctuary, women on the other.

The two congregations began work on the present church structure in 1888 and construction was completed three years later. Lighting was by oil-burning lamps mounted along the walls and above on a chandelier (still seen in the sanctuary today).

Not long after the building’s completion, a difference of opinion cause the congregations to split, the Lutheran group buying out the Reform group’s interest. Members of the Reform church (known today as St. Jacob’s Community Church) left to construct their own building in nearby Cairo.

In 1947, St. Jacob’s centennial year, the congregation decided to create additional classroom and meeting space by digging a basement under the building. Congregation members did nearly all the work themselves, excavating by hand.

Continued growth soon brought on a need for additional classrooms. Ground was broken for a new education wing in 1966 and work completed the following year. Since that time, the congregation has remodeled the church sanctuary, erected a steeple and added a picnic shelter and ball field. In 1998 at 7,700 square foot addition was completed. It comprises a fellowship hall, kitchen, atrium and administrative offices.

For most of its history, St. Jacob’s existed as a joint parish with other nearby Lutheran congregations. The congregation hired its first full-time pastor in 1964 and completed a parsonage on Lover’s Lane that same year. The Rev. William McCabe, pastor of both St. Jacob’s and Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Hartville from 1959 to 1962, was the last to serve on such a basis. The Rev. Robert S. Kelly became St. Jacob’s first full-time pastor in 1964. Pastor Kelly served St. Jacob’s until 1970. In 1970 the Rev. Herbert S. Garnes, III was called to be pastor. Pastor Garnes served St. Jacob’s until his retirement in 2007. In the summer of 2008 The Rev. Dr. Leah K. Schafer was called to St. Jacob’s

St. Jacob’s Cemetery is located immediately south of the church. The cemetery was stared before the establishment of the Union congregation and early in the history of Lake Township. The cemetery is currently maintained by the St. Jacob’s Cemetery Association.

St. Jacob’s is the chartering organization for Boy Scout Troop #10, which regularly meets at the church. The congregation was one of the many congregations which organized the Hartville area FISH in the late 1960s. St. Luke’s Lutheran Home has a long history of support by St. Jacob’s. Currently, St. Jacob’s provides financial support to the Rev. Jeffrey Johnson (a former intern) and his family, who serve as missionaries in Guam, as well as many other outreach ministries and programs.