Earlier this week I wrote about the history of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church at Wuthrich Hill, which was formed when St. James’ Lutheran Church at Wuthrich Hill and St. John’s Lutheran Church of New Bern merged in 1947.
St. John’s Lutheran Church was organized in 1892 by folks from the New Bern and Sandoval Communities. Two years later, the folks from Sandoval organized their own congregation, Zion Lutheran Church, which is still active today.
From 1970 to 1977, Prince of Peace, Zion, and Immanuel Lutheran Church on the west side of Taylor were joined together in a multi-congregation parish served by a single pastor. Prince of Peace and Immanuel continued in a dual parish arrangement until 2010.
The community of Sandoval was granted a post office in 1894, the same year that Zion was organized. It may be a sleepy town today, but at one point it reportedly had not only the typical general store, but also a saloon, dance hall, bowling alley, and a rodeo arena!
As a side note, it was fun to watch the vultures fight for spots on the cross that tops the tower closest to the camera. I’m a little surprised there aren’t any on it in this photo.