Kristian Anker
Encyclopedia
Kristian Anker was a Lutheran minister who served as the first president of the combined Trinity Seminary and Dana College
.
, Denmark
. He attended the Galtrug Folkschool 1870-71 and the Sagatun Folk High School
(Norwegian: Sagatun folkehøyskole) in Hamar, Norway from 1872-73. He was a teacher 1873-80 at Galtrup Folk School and Krogsballe Folk School in Humlebæk, Denmark. He attended the Seminary at Askov Folkschool (Danish: Askov Højskole) in Vejen Municipality, Denmark from 1880-81. He was ordained as a Lutheran Minister on September 25, 1881. He subsequently immigrated to the United States during 1881.
, and Lincoln, Nebraska
. Kristian Anker was pastor of St. Stephen's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chicago
from 1881-1882.
In 1894, Kristian Anker helped organize The Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church in North America, commonly known as North Church. In 1894, Pastor Kristian Anker, then owner and principal of Elk Horn Højskole, sold it to the newly formed North Church for use as a seminary and college. Elk Horn Højskole in Elk Horn, Iowa was the first Danish style Folk high school
in America. Founded in 1878, it served Danish immigrants and drew them to Elk Horn in great numbers. From 1894 to 1909 Peter Sørensen Vig
would serve as principal as well as an instructor at the seminary.
In 1896, the North Church and the Blair Church, which had been formed in 1884, came together to form the United Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church (commonly known as the United Church). When the two Churches merged, the North Church seminary was consolidated with Trinity Seminary in Blair, Nebraska
. That same year, the college-level preparatory classes that had been offered at Trinity Seminary were consolidated with those offered at Elk Horn College. In 1899, leaders of the United Church voted to relocate all college-level classes to the Blair campus. When the departments of Elk Horn Højskole were transferred to Trinity Seminary, Kristian Anker came with them as president of the merged institutions. Kristian Anker served as President of Trinity Seminary (1899–1902) and Dana College (1899–1905).
Dana College
Dana College is a now defunct baccalaureate college located in Blair, Nebraska. Its rural 150-acre campus is approximately 25 miles northwest of Omaha, and overlooks a portion of the Missouri River Valley....
.
Background
Kristian Anker was born in OdenseOdense
The city of Odense is the third largest city in Denmark.Odense City has a population of 167,615 and is the main city of the island of Funen...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. He attended the Galtrug Folkschool 1870-71 and the Sagatun Folk High School
Sagatun folk high school
Sagatun Folk High School was a folk high school in Hamar, Norway.The first of its kind in Norway, it was founded by Herman Anker and Olaus Arvesen in 1864. The school building was erected around 1865, and drawn by architect Emil Victor Langlet. The school was disestablished in 1892, having been...
(Norwegian: Sagatun folkehøyskole) in Hamar, Norway from 1872-73. He was a teacher 1873-80 at Galtrup Folk School and Krogsballe Folk School in Humlebæk, Denmark. He attended the Seminary at Askov Folkschool (Danish: Askov Højskole) in Vejen Municipality, Denmark from 1880-81. He was ordained as a Lutheran Minister on September 25, 1881. He subsequently immigrated to the United States during 1881.
Career
Kristian Anker served as a Lutheran pastor in Elk Horn, IowaElk Horn, Iowa
Elk Horn is a city in Shelby County, Iowa, United States. The population was 649 at the 2000 census. Elk Horn is known as a center of Danish ethnicity and is home to The Danish Immigrant Museum...
, and Lincoln, Nebraska
Lincoln, Nebraska
The City of Lincoln is the capital and the second-most populous city of the US state of Nebraska. Lincoln is also the county seat of Lancaster County and the home of the University of Nebraska. Lincoln's 2010 Census population was 258,379....
. Kristian Anker was pastor of St. Stephen's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
from 1881-1882.
In 1894, Kristian Anker helped organize The Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church in North America, commonly known as North Church. In 1894, Pastor Kristian Anker, then owner and principal of Elk Horn Højskole, sold it to the newly formed North Church for use as a seminary and college. Elk Horn Højskole in Elk Horn, Iowa was the first Danish style Folk high school
Folk high school
Folk high schools are institutions for adult education that generally do not grant academic degrees, though certain courses might exist leading to that goal...
in America. Founded in 1878, it served Danish immigrants and drew them to Elk Horn in great numbers. From 1894 to 1909 Peter Sørensen Vig
Peter Sørensen Vig
Peter Sørensen Vig , commonly known as P. S. Vig, was a Danish American pastor, educator, and historian in the Lutheran church...
would serve as principal as well as an instructor at the seminary.
In 1896, the North Church and the Blair Church, which had been formed in 1884, came together to form the United Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church (commonly known as the United Church). When the two Churches merged, the North Church seminary was consolidated with Trinity Seminary in Blair, Nebraska
Blair, Nebraska
Blair is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 7,990 at the 2000 census. Blair is a part of the Omaha-Council Bluffs Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...
. That same year, the college-level preparatory classes that had been offered at Trinity Seminary were consolidated with those offered at Elk Horn College. In 1899, leaders of the United Church voted to relocate all college-level classes to the Blair campus. When the departments of Elk Horn Højskole were transferred to Trinity Seminary, Kristian Anker came with them as president of the merged institutions. Kristian Anker served as President of Trinity Seminary (1899–1902) and Dana College (1899–1905).
External links
Other sources
- E. Mortensen, Stories from Our Church (Des Moines, Iowa: 1952)
- P. C. Nyholm, The Americanization of the Danish Lutheran Churches (Copenhagen: 1963)
- J. M. Jensen, The United Evangelical Lutheran Church: An Interpretation (Minneapolis, Mn: 1964)
Other Reading
- Foght, Harold Waldstein Rural Denmark and its Schools (MacMillan New York: 1915)
- Schwieder, Dorothy Iowa: The Middle Land (University Of Iowa Press: 1996)
- Vig, P. S. Dansk Luthersk Mission i Amerika i Tiden för 1884 (Blair, Nebraska: 1917) Norwegian