Sunday service set at historic chapel

LOCKRIDGE ? First Augustana Lutheran Church in Lockridge will have worship at 10:30 a.m. Sunday at the Historic New Sweden Chapel, northwest of Lockridge.

The Rev. Gloria Friedrich, who serves First Augustana Lutheran, will conduct the Communion service.

The New Sweden Chapel, listed with the National Historical Society, closed in 1948 and First Augustana Lutheran of Lockridge was appointed as caretakers and overseers. Services are held at the chapel twice a year ? on the first Sunday in June and the second Sunday in September.

The church was established in 1848 by a group of Swedish people led by Peter Cassel. This was the first Lutheran church established west of the Mississippi River.

All former members and friends are invited to attend the service. Many visitors come to view the chapel and look for ancestors buried in the cemetery.