The Nymore Lutheran Church had its beginning in 1905, when a small group of devout Christians met at the home of Mathew and Marie Larson in Nymore. The meetings were held in the Norwegian language. Worship services, Sunday School and the Ladies Aid meetings were held in their home.
Following a number of meetings in the various homes, the Nymore Lutheran Free church was organized on Dec 6, 1907. The congregation was incorporated under the laws of the State of Minnesota on July 27, 1908. Among the charter members were Rev. Amundsen, Mathew Larson, O. Risland, Mr. Lukken and a Mr. Peterson or Johnson, and Mr. Akre.
At first, church services were held in the Congregational Church. In 1908, Mathew Larson, who then owned considerable property in Nymore, donated a lot for the church. He also agreed to supply the logs for the lumber needed for the buildings. The logs were hauled out to a sawmill near the brickyards and the finished lumber was in turn hauled back to the church site. Under the supervision of a Mr. Clark, the work went forward with labor donated by the various members of the church. The church was built at the corner of 4th Street and Wood Avenue.
Rev. Carl Amundersen was the first pastor from 1907-1912. Rev. Amundsen was already serving the Aardahl Free Lutheran Church of Frohn township and the Pony Lake Church of Liberty township. Both of those churches had been organized before 1900.
In 1909, the young women of the church organized in a group called the “Willing Workers”. The land for the Nymore Lutheran Cemetery was donated at this time by Mathew Larson. Julius Larson, father of Mrs. Carl Amundsen, was the first person buried in Nymore Cemetery. The second person buried here was John Melhus.
The first child baptized in the new church was Earl Akre, the son of the Ed Akre. The first confirmation was held on September 26, 1909 with five members being confirmed.
Pastors that served the early Nymore Lutheran Church were Carl Amundson from 1908 to 1912; George Larson from 1913 to 1916; O. P. Grambo 1915-1922; H. E. Bode, 1922-1923; O. C. Olson 1923 to 1927; Andrew Hegre 1928 to 1930; Carl Amundson 1930 to 1934; and Harold M. Bueide from 1934 to 1939.
In November, 1913, Rev. George Larson received a most pleasant surprise from the Nymore, Aardahl and Trefoldlghed congregations. When coming home from the service in Bemidji, they found the church in Nymore filled to capacity with friends. When Rev. Larson commenced his service, J. A. Olson interrupted and said, “The service will be a little different than usual this evening,” stating that while Rev. Larson had left many friends in Washington, he also had many friends in this locality. At the end of his speech, he presented the minister with a handsome purse of money, on behalf of his congregations with which to buy furniture for the new parsonage which had been built recently for him at 412 Wood Avenue. Rev. Larson had splendid success in his church work the four months he has been in Nymore, and his congregations were exceeding pleased with the progress. Churches had been built and others had been improved and an up-to-date parsonage has just been completed. A new congregation had been organized in Cass Lake and he has also begun his regular services in Bemidji.
On April 8, 1918, the Lutheran parsonage, occupied by Rev. O. P. Grambo, wife and five children, burned to the ground and many of the early records of the church were lost. The fire was caused by the explosion of an air tight stove in the pastor’s study. Everything upstairs, including Rev. Grambo’s $1,000 library, was burned, but the furniture downstairs was saved. The loss of the contents amounted to some over $1,500, and there was no insurance on the furniture and books. Rev. Grambo and family had occupied the residence for two years. (Bemidji Daily Pioneer, Apr 8, 1918)
Rev. Hegre, pastor from 1928-1930, was born in Stavanger, Norway. He attended school in Norway and He entered the Augsburg seminary in Minneapolis in the fall of 1925. Working in a printing plant, as a bookbinder, he made enough money to keep himself in school, and in the spring of 1929, he graduated from the seminary and was ordained a month later. During part of the time that he was attending Augsburg, he made trips to Bemidji every two weeks, and for one year from the spring of 1928 until the spring of 1929, preached at the Nymore church. After being ordained, he came to Bemidji to become the permanent pastor of the Nymore Lutheran Free Church but also the Aardahl Lutheran Free Church and the Trinity Lutheran Free Church at Wilton.
By this time, the church in Nymore alternated Sundays in the use of Norwegian and English sermons. A joint Thanksgiving service between the First Lutheran Church, the Bethel Lutheran and the Nymore church was held.
Rev. Carl Amundsen served the parish from 1930-1934. A parsonage was purchased at 701 South 4th Street in 1930. This parsonage was also destroyed by fire in 1935, and after being rebuilt at the same location, it was used until 1973.
The first church building was replaced in 1963-1964 and the name was changed to the Calvary Lutheran Church. The new church building at 1015 South 4th St. was dedicated on April 26, 1964. The old church building was sold to the Nymore Revival Center about two months later.
Ground was broken Aug 11, 1963 for the new home of the Nymore Lutheran Church, with construction of the $102,295 edifice scheduled to begin this week on Fourth Street South, between McKinley and Grant Avenues. Present for the groundbreaking ceremony were Carol Radi, Luther League president; Arnold Lewer, Sunday School Supt.; Mrs. Adolph Kluver, Dorcas Circle chairman; Al Sletten, building fund treasurer; Mrs. Art Krogseng, Ladies Aid president, Adolph Kluver, Men’s Club president; Mrs. Glenn Skime, Esther Circle chairman; Rev. Vernon Nelson, Bethel Lutheran pastor; Paster T. H. Megorden, First Lutheran Church; Chris Olson, Golden Age Club chairman; Wayland Jones, chairman building committee; John Saltee, president of the congregation; Mrs. C. A. Glassman, secretary of the building committee; Mrs. Wallace Wubbels, Couples club; Pastor Eugene Anderson, Nymore Lutheran Church; Mrs. Hildes Tell and Wallace Wubbels, building committee. Not present were Donald Norum and Wayne Berglund of the building committee. (Bemidji Pioneer, Aug 12, 1963)
Groundbreaking for a new building on Highway No. 71 was held in 1981. In 1982, Palm Sunday services were held at three churches. Services were conducted at the Wood Avenue Church, the 4th and Grant church, and by Pastor Luther Abrahamson at the new Calvary Church.
An extensive history of this church and its membership is online at http://www.calvarybemidji.org/html/about-us/history.html. Other details for this summary were found in the vertical files of the Beltrami County History Center, and in the newspaper accounts of the Bemidji Pioneer at www.chroniclingamerica.org.