Phanuel Lutheran Church

Built in 1917, the church is the fourth home of a congregation that settled the area near present-day Wallace in the 1820s. The group gathered in a barn and log structure before building a frame church in the 1850s. After fire caused by a lightning strike destroyed the building, the congregation erected the current Neoclassical church.

Like so many rural churches, the congregation at Phanuel Lutheran dwindled over in recent decades. Committed to the building’s preservation, trustees voted to donate the church to Indiana Landmarks along with approximately three acres of surrounding land. The congregation gathered for a final worship service in November of 2018 before transferring the building to us.