HOPEFUL LUTHERAN CHURCH
his pigeons during World War II. From around 1910 through the 1950s, there were several individuals in the region who raised, trained, raced, and even wagered on their birds. Covington and Bellevue had pigeon racing clubs. There were local races, such as the popu lar 45-mile Sunday morning run from Dillsboro, Ind., to Bellevue, Ky. Typically, a club member transported the competing birds to Dillsboro and released them at a set time. Meanwhile, back in Bellevue, a clock was mounted on the back wall of each bird’s roost, and when the bird landed on its perch, a camera was triggered, recording the bird’s arrival time. One bird from the J. H. & S. Loft at 228 Prospect Street, Bellevue, was entered in the 1954 Mountain Empire Futurity, a 320-mile western endurance trip. Of the 450 birds that were entered from 31 states, only 7 completed the run. The J. H. & S. bird won second-prize money. This Bellevue aviary held government contracts for the breeding, raising, and training of birds for national emergencies. Homing pigeons were also used in local celebrations. On May 9, 1913, the opening day of the Covington Blue Sox team in the new Federal Baseball League, homing pigeons were released to each of the other cities in the league, announcing that Covington now had major league baseball. “Bellevue Bird One of Seven to Finish Big Race,” KP, October 15, 1954, 10. “Bud Deglow Had Appreciation for Fully Living His Life,” KP, November 10, 2001, 12A. Coleman, J. Winston. Stage- Coach Days in the Bluegrass. Louisville, Ky.: Standard Press, 1936.
Michael R. Sweeney
HOPEFUL HEIGHTS. The community of Hopeful Heights in Boone Co. grew up around the Hopeful Lutheran Church, from which the town’s main thoroughfare, Hopeful Church Rd., also received its name. The church’s adjacent cemetery contains the graves of many important Boone Countians. For many years, the area was a sleepy neighborhood of farms, but when I-75 was built, it brought the development of the nearby Florence Mall. Thereafter, Hopeful Heights began participating in the amazing population growth that has been so much a part of Boone Co.’s recent history. In November 1960, there was a movement by the City of Florence to annex Hopeful Heights, but 22 Hopeful Heights residents fi led suit to stop the action in December. In April 1961, Hopeful Heights incorporated as a protective move. With a population of only 550, and in view of the continuing debate regarding the provision of much-needed city ser vices, especially sewers, the sixth-class City of Hopeful Heights faced a severe financial crisis. In 1969 a majority of the city’s residents signed a petition requesting the dissolution of their town; in January 1970, the Appeals Court dismissed a suit attempting to block the dissolution, and the city came to an official end. By 1982 about half of Hopeful Heights had been made part of Florence, and by 2000 the entire area had been annexed by Florence. Becker, Lee B. “Hopeful Heights Off to New Disagreement,” KE, August 23, 1969, 21.
“Hopeful Heights Is Dissolved,” KP, January 29, 1970, 1K. “Hopeful Hts. Had Lost All Hope,” KE, December 26, 1982, C7. Reis, Jim. “Annexation Battles Stirred Hopeful Heights,” KP, July 15, 1996, 4K.
HOPEFUL LUTHERAN CHURCH. Hopeful Lutheran Church, located just outside of Florence in Boone Co., is the oldest Lutheran church west of the Allegheny Mountains. The founding families were members of the Hebron Lutheran Church in Madison Co., Va., and descendants of German colonists who had immigrated to North America during the early 1700s. (See German Americans.) The first families coming from Virginia to Kentucky arrived in Boone Co. in November 1805. The members of the group were Elizabeth Hoffman, John and Millie House, George and Elizabeth Rouse, John and Nancy Rouse, Ephraim and Susannah Tanner, and Frederick and Rose Zimmerman. Each family soon built a cabin, with the exception of George Rouse, who pitched his tent not far from where the present Hopeful Lutheran Church now stands. The first religious ser vices were held at the homestead of George Rouse. Worship ser vices were conducted in German and included hymn singing, prayers, and sermons read by Ephraim Tanner. These settlers’ former pastor in Virginia, Rev. William Carpenter, sent a constitution and urged them to form a congregation. They did so on January 6, 1806, and the following men signed that constitution: Daniel Beemon, John Beemon, John House, George Rouse, Jacob Rouse, John Rouse, Michael Rouse, Ephraim Tanner, Simeon Tanner, and Frederick Zimmerman. All signers were from the Hebron Church in Virginia; five had arrived with the original group in November, and the remaining five arrived soon thereafter. George Rouse donated an acre of ground on which to build the church, and in 1807 a log church was constructed. In his 1854 history of the church, Rev. David Harbaugh described the building: “It was a cabin church in reality, built of unhewn logs. The roof and door were made of clapboards; the floor with puncheons, and the seats were made of saplings. An opening was made at each end by sawing out some logs for windows. These were always open, that is, without sash or lights. They had neither stove nor fireplace in it, yet they met for worship during the winter.” From the beginning, the congregation of the Hopeful Lutheran Church strove to have an ordained minister come at least once a year to administer the sacraments. Rev. William Carpenter came from Virginia at least twice for that purpose. In 1813 he moved to Boone Co. and became the first pastor of the congregation. He served the parish longer than any of his successors, ministering until his death in 1833. Both a new constitution and a new church building were added during Carpenter’s pastorate. The new church building was a 25-by-25-foot log church, with an end gallery and a raised pulpit. Before his death, Carpenter wrote to Rev. Jacob Crigler, urging him to take charge of the Hopeful church’s parish. Crigler did so in 1834.
459
Pastor Crigler was heartily in favor of the use of English in the liturgy. In the final years of Carpenter’s ministry, ser vices had alternated between German and English, but under Crigler, English became the language used exclusively in worship. In 1837 a 35-by-50-foot brick church was built from bricks made from a site near the church. Much of the work was donated, so the final treasurer’s report listed only $1,587 in expenses. In 1854 the Hebron Evangelical Lutheran Church was formed near what became Hebron. The Hopeful and Hebron Lutheran churches formed a joint parish, which lasted until 1947, and a parsonage was built halfway between the two on a lot near Limaburg. Rev. W. C. Harter began his work at Hopeful Lutheran Church in early 1864 with great promise, but he died after a brief illness on July 31 of that year. After a short vacancy, Rev. Thomas Drake was called to become the church’s pastor in 1865. During the Civil War, Drake had served as a provost marshal in Fairfield Co., Ohio. The predominant political mood of the congregation was highly in favor of the South, and since some of the people in the county had been arrested or imprisoned by a provost marshal during the war, Pastor Drake was not well received. Although he remained at Hopeful Lutheran Church for two years, he accomplished little because of the bitter feelings regarding his ser vice during the war. Rev. A. G. Emmerson began his ser vice at Hopeful Lutheran Church in 1867 and was able to bring healing and growth to the church during his two-year ministry. Rev. W. C. Barnett became pastor in 1871 and led the church for the next 10 years. From 1881 to 1883, Rev. A. J. Douglas was pastor of the parish. His son, Lloyd C. Douglas, was an author who wrote such books as The Robe and Dr. Hudson’s Secret Journal. Except for the pastorate of Rev. H. Max Lentz (1890–1900), the period from 1881 to 1916 was one of the shortest terms of ser vice for pastors at Hopeful Lutheran Church. In 1917, during the pastorate of the Rev. George A. Royer, the present brick church building was erected at a cost of more than $12,000. At the end of Rev. J. Paul Rimmer’s pastorate, the Hopeful-Hebron joint parish was dissolved; each church became independent. A brick parsonage was built beside the Hopeful Lutheran Church in 1949, during the pastorate of Rev. Herman V. J. Andres. An educational wing was added, and in 1956 the church celebrated its 150th anniversary. Rev. Robert C. Richter became pastor in 1963 and served the parish until his retirement in 1980. Rev. John H. Pollock followed him in 1981. In 1991 extensive remodeling was begun and a new social hall was added to the church. This work on the church was dedicated in November 1992. In April 1996 Rev. Blair Fields was called to become the church’s pastor. In 2005 the church broke ground for a new sanctuary, and in 2006 the congregation celebrated its 200th anniversary. Fields remains the church’s pastor. Church records and archives of Hopeful Lutheran Church, Boone Co., Ky.