What a difference 149 years can make.

When the First Universalist Church of Minneapolis was founded in 1859, Minneapolis was a new frontier town in
a one-year-old state. In many respects, it still was a wild, untamed place.

Picture what the city looked like: Streets were grimy dirt roads, spotted with horse manure and tobacco spit. Pigs, dogs, chickens and even cows roamed the city, despite citizens' complaints. Women who ventured out on the filthy board-walk streets could hike up their ankle-length dresses (to a modest level), but their laced-up boots and layers of petticoats were caked with muck. (No fun to hand-wash, starch and iron.)

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Washburn, Pillsbury, Lowry, Crosby, Loring, King.

These are not merely the namesakes of our streets and parks and schools. Or the names carved into notable tombstones at Lakewood Cemetery. Or the founders and supporters of Minneapolis flour and lumber industries, the parks and library system, the city’s early transportation, the Washburn Orphanage, the Institute of Arts. These are the names of some of the local citizens who launched the First Universalist Church of Minneapolis and the Unity Settlement House, which helped to take care of the city’s hard-working impoverished families. They found inspiration in the sermons of Reverends Keyes, Tuttle and Shutter as they fueled the progressive, ground-building actions that put Minneapolis on the map. Following are quick profiles of just three of the more notable contributors from our history. All were part of an interesting chain of families that started in Maine and ended up in Lakewood Cemetery.

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After Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species was published in 1859 — the same year our church was formed — it didn’t take long for the theory to trickle across the Atlantic, since it was an overnight best-seller. It captured the attention of naturalist Ralph Waldo Emerson. His interest, in turn, inspired fellow New Englander Herman Bisbee, who brought it with him to the pioneering Universalist settlement in St. Anthony, across the river from our own congregation.

The subsequent heresy trial of Bisbee is considered a black mark on Universalism, embroiling as a major player our own Rev. James Tuttle. It is a well-known story in national Universalist lore, told well in the UU documentary “Heritage of Heresy: Bisbee & Tuttle,” which featured Pamela Vincent and local historian Penny Petersen. But for those who aren’t familiar with the tale yet, the short version is this.

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James Harvey Tuttle came to Minneapolis in 1866 in part because of the Great Minnesota Falsehood, the idea, promoted by land speculators, that our climate was a cure-all for every kind of ailment.  Thus began a ministry that was to last 25 years. It included the swift growth of the congregation, which outgrew our first building in less than 10 years; the construction of an imposing and ornate stone building dedicated in 1876; its reconstruction after a fire in 1888, and Tuttle’s rise to local and national prominence.

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Rev. Marion ShutterI would rather be a heathen, living in a land where the name of Christ
has never been heard, where his views of the Father have never been
promulgated -- a heathen bowing before the hideous deities of my own
brain and hands -- than to believe that the character of our Father in
heaven is such as the popular creed has made it, a God who is so unjust
or indifferent as to permit sin and suffering always to exist, or so
helpless that he cannot prevent it.
— Marion Shutter, from his sermon Endless Punishment from the Standpoint of Reason, 1890

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Eighty members who joined First Universalist Church before 1984 (25-year plus members) enjoyed a wonderful luncheon at the Girard church on Saturday, May 30. John Cummins gave the keynote address, and David Lauth provided musical entertainment. Thanks to Jenny Thomas and Carol Johnson for arranging a delightful experience, and AUW and youth from the Youth Cultural Exchange for serving and cleaning up. Twenty-five year members were invited to submit their memories of the church on this form. A few responses were included in the Sesquicentenial book. All will be archived as part of the church history.

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The Sesquicentennial celebration kicked off on October 25 and 26, 2008, one year in advance of our actual anniversary, with "Faithful Founders and Free thinking Liberals: Launching our Celebration of 150 Years of Liberal Faith in Minneapolis."  This enlightening and enlivening weekend of events began on Saturday with nearly 130 UUs assembled to hear presentations by three noted Unitarian Universalist theologians, ministers and historians.  If you weren't able to attend or you were there but would love to read what these excellent speakers said, read on!!!!

The Rev. Dr. Paul Rasor, Unitarian Universalist minister, theologian and the Director of the Center for the Study of Religious Freedom at Virginia Wesleyan College, began with a presentation titled "Circumscribing Universalism:  Navigating Some Universalist Shoals".  Paul quoted Dr. Robert Cummins, former head of the Universalist church of American and father of our Minister Emeritus John Cummins, as saying "a circumscribed Universalism is unthinkable".  Read Paul's presentation here.

Following Paul, the Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Strong, a raised Universalist, student of Universalist history and Unitarian Universalist minister of religious education spoke on "Universalism's Long and Proud History:  Its people, theologies, scholarship and just plain quirkiness".  Read her Narrative for a Romp through Universalist History, complete with dates and fascinating factoids.

The third speaker was John Hurley, the UUA archivist and Director of Communications. John got our history juices flowing by reading articles about our congregation's 50^th and 100^th anniversaries from the Universalist/Christian Leader, predecessor to UUWorld magazine.  He talked about the importance of history in answering the questions what do we need to be reconciled to and what wounds need to be healed.  Read John's presentation here. 

On Sunday, Rev. Rasor preached on "Democracy Matters." Read his sermon here.   Following the second service,  Rev. Strong shared fascinating excerpts from Rev. Marion Shutter's ten sermon series on evolution, which he preached around the turn of the century to crowds of over  a thousand. Rev. Shutter was minister of our congregation, then known as the Church of the Redeemer, from 1891 to 1939.  You can read more about his ministry under Articles.  Click here to read excerpts from his evolution sermons.

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Thanks to everyone who helped make the Darwin Day program such a great success. Nearly 500 adults and children celebrated Darwin’s birthday with a piece of cake following the inspiring and enlightening worship services. Special thanks to John Jensen, Janice Hunton, the choir and Jim Riccardo for Darwin-related music; to Ben Cooper for his portrayal of Darwin and to Rev. Kate Tucker for her “Unfinished Business” sermon, which is now available as a podcast on the main www.firstuniv.org site under Resources & References. Many children helped to paint “Chuck,” a paper mache Galapagos tortoise created by the RE staff.

110 people gathered in the Social Hall after a catered lunch for a panel presentation on "Darwin, Science and Religion, Then and Now." Thanks to our panelists David Rhees, Ken Waters, Minister Emeritus John Cummins and moderator (and program chairperson) Kim Stelson for their fascinating presentations. Thanks also to sound specialist Frank Bacon and to Martha Joy and Barb Melom, lunch and clean up coordinators, and crew Polly Hudson, Geoff Lenox, Nancy McCall, Catherine Dorr, Joy Throm, Phyllis Stenerson, Gary Melom, Phil Burke, Joyce and Jim Sutherland, Mary Beth Hoelzer, Caren Stelson, Judy and Dick Carlson, Marlene Walth, Martha Joy, John Cushing, Cecilia Newton and David Thomas.
Darwin's groundbreaking work Origin of the Species was published the same year our church was founded. The Rev. Dr. Marion Shutter, our minister for 48 years, drew crowds of over a thousand for each of the ten sermons he preached on evolution in 1900. You can read excerpts from his sermons in the Articles page on this site, and on the Events page article about he October Kickoff workshop.

Darwin Day is celebrated around the world on or near February 12, Darwin's 200th birthday. Find more information about those events on the Darwin Day website.Click on Read More to see the press release announcing this event.

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Unity Settlement House was established in Minneapolis on September 21, 1897, by a group of religiously liberal ministers led by the Rev. Marion Shutter of First Universalist Church. The group called itself the Union for Social Improvement, and at its organizing meeting in Shutter’s study decided to establish Unity House as a “social settlement” in north Minneapolis.

In 1898, just six and a half months after the founding of Unity House, the following accomplishments were reported:

• A kindergarten with full enrollment of 56 children
• A mothers' club (32 attendees)
• A day nursery
• A penny savings program (65 children)
• A library program in cooperation with the
• Public Library (100 children)
• Evening classes (70 students)
• Social evenings with lectures by University of Minnesota professors and others
• A boys' club (115 members)

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