Our History
In the early 1850s the community about Dearborn was settled by immigrants of German descent. In 1859 the Ohio Conference of the Evangelical Church voted to take up Dearborn as a mission and erect a church as soon as possible. For a short period, this new church used the Presbyterian Church located at the corner of Mason and Park Avenues rent free. The first pastor was J.P. Schnatz in 1859. Their own church was dedicated on February 5, 1860.
In 1871, 1905, and again in 1915, the church was remodeled and enlarged to meet the needs of the growing congregation.
German was used exclusively up to the year of 1904, but the younger people did not understand German and did not stay for worship. The pastor began church school classes in English and preached the evening services in English. German was fully discontinued after 1918.
The congregation continued to outgrow their building so a new building became imperative. The new church was dedicated on November 20, 1921 at a cost of $43,251.22. This building is still in use as the worship center (sanctuary.)
In 1946, the Evangelical and the United Brethren in Christ denominations merged so our church became known as First Evangelical United Brethren Church.
As the congregation continued to grow, an education wing was approved in April 1966 and completed in 1968. During this same period the Methodist and Evangelical United Brethren denominations merged. Our church became known as Good Shepherd United Methodist Church.
Since that time, we have continued to serve the Dearborn area.
