©Mennonite Heritage Centre 2003
Last updated 19 February 2009
Mennonite Heritage Centre Archives
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Bergthal Mennonite Church (Didsbury, Alta.)
Retrieval numbers: Volumes 86, 1628, 2940, 4001, 4689.
Title: Bergthal Mennonite Church (Didsbury, Alta.) fonds
Dates: 1962-2008
Extent: 40 cm of textual records
Repository: Mennonite Heritage Centre Archives
Historical note
The Bergthal Mennonite Church was founded in Didsbury,
Alberta, in 1903. It joined the Conference of Mennonites in Middle
Canada in 1910. There were Sommerfeld as well as General Conference
members but many Sommerfeld families left after the 1910 decision to
join one conference. They had built their first meeting house in 1903
and this was moved west in 1918-1919 along with the cemetery. In 1923
and following, many new Mennonite immigrants from Russia joined the
congregation. In 1929 a basement was added to the meeting house. In
1931 the membership was 104.The building was enlarged in 1934. In 1937
a Bible institute was begun by the congregation. This Bible institute
was taken over by the conference in 1946. In 1938 the membership was
105. The buildings were sold to the conference and a new meeting house
for the congregation was completed in 1948. This building was enlarged
in 1965-1966. In 1951 the membership stood at 164; in 1967 at 201; in
1980 at 193; and in 2000 at 156. The leaders of the congregation were:
Abram Dyck, Jacob Hamm (1903-1910), Gerhard Neufeld (1910-1946), Daniel
Unruh (1921-1923), Isaac Epp (1923-1925), C. D. Harder (1927-1935), J.
P. Loewen (1931-1988), John Sawatzky (1931-1945), William Falk
(1931-1932), Cornelius Neufeld (1932-1991), Jack Neufeld (1932-1972),
Martin Goerzen (1958-1963), Werner Froese (1967-1977), Erwin Siemens
(1977-1981), David Letkemann (1982-1986), Norman Bergen (1988-1991),
Bruce Wiebe (1992-2000).
Scope and content note
This fonds contains bulletins
(1968-2004), congregational meeting minutes which include at times financial
statements (1962-1990), financial statements (1969-1980), annual reports (1975-1993),
directories (1977-1994), programme ([1971]), congregational history (1978),
newsletters ([198-?]-1997), and constitution and rules ([196-?]-1981). The records
pertain to the founding and development of the Mennonite congregation Didsbury,
Alberta. They document some of the leaders and participants in the congregation.
Index terms
Subject terms
Bergthal Mennonite Church (Didsbury, Alta.)
Creators
Bergthal Mennonite Church (Didsbury, Alta.)
Adjunct descriptive data
Finding aids
Inventory file list available.
Notes
Restrictions on access
No restrictions on access.
Other notes
Textual records have been deposited on a regular basis at
the Mennonite Heritage Centre. Described by Bert Friesen 19 September
2002.
Bergthal Mennonite Church (Didsbury, Alberta) fonds file list:
Volume 86
- Bergthal Mennonite Church congregational meeting minutes (1962), rules of parliamentary procedure ([196-?])
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1968)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1969), financial statements (1969)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1970)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1971), financial statements (1971), deacons installation service ([1971])
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1972)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1973)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1974)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1975), annual reports (1975)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1976), financial statement (1976)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1977), membership list (1977), congregational meeting minutes (1977), annual reports (1977)
Volume 1628
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1978), 75th anniversary booklet with brief congregational history (1978), directory (1978), congregational meeting minutes (1978)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1979), congregational meeting minutes (1979)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1980), financial statement
(1980), paper on opportunities for single persons ([19-]), newsletter
([198-?]), constitution (1980)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1981), congregational
meeting minutes (1981), annual reports (1981), congregational policy
handbook (1981)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1982), congregational meeting minutes (1982), annual reports (1982)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1983), congregational meeting minutes (1983)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1984), congregational meeting minutes (1984)
Volume 2940
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1985), congregational meeting minutes (1985), annual reports (1985)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1986), congregational meeting minutes (1986)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1987), congregational meeting minutes (1987)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1988), congregational meeting minutes (1988)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1989), congregational meeting minutes (1989)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1990), congregational meeting minutes (1990)
Volume 4001
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1991)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1992)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1993), annual reports (1993)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1994), directory (1994)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1995), newsletter (1995)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1996), newsletter (1996), directory
(1996)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1997), newsletters (1997)
Volume 4689
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1998)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (1999)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (2000)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (2001)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (2002)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (2003)
- Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (2004)
Volume 2154
1. Bergthal Mennonite Church
bulletins (2005)
2. Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (2006)
3. Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (2007)
4. Bergthal Mennonite Church bulletins (2008)