People > Notable Norkans > Rev. Adam Traudt
Rev. Adam Traudt
Johann Adam Traudt was born in Norka on September 18, 1860, the son of Peter Traudt (1838-1900) and Anna Catharina Eberhardt (1840-1872). His mother died in 1872, and his father married Anna Margaretha Reifschneider. The family immigrated to the United States in 1879 aboard the steamship Lessing and settled in Valley, Nebraska.
Adam began his education at Doane College (now Doane University) in Crete, Nebraska, in the 1880s. During his studies, Pastor Traudt ministered to a group of Volga German immigrants who later formed the First German Congregational Church in Lincoln, Nebraska. The group led by Pastor Traudt met in the Park School from May 1888 to March 1889.
Adam transferred to the Chicago Theological Seminary to complete his education and graduated in 1891.
Adam began his education at Doane College (now Doane University) in Crete, Nebraska, in the 1880s. During his studies, Pastor Traudt ministered to a group of Volga German immigrants who later formed the First German Congregational Church in Lincoln, Nebraska. The group led by Pastor Traudt met in the Park School from May 1888 to March 1889.
Adam transferred to the Chicago Theological Seminary to complete his education and graduated in 1891.
Portrait of Rev. Adam Traudt. Source: "First German Congregational Church (Denver) Diamond Jubilee 1894-1969," by Rev. Howard K. Hammerland. Prepared by Chester G. Krieger.
Pastor Traudt married Ida Rosina Zumstein on May 27, 1891, in Waukegan, Illinois. Ida was born in Berne, Switzerland on September 20, 1871. Ida was the daughter of the house mother at Doane College. It appears that Ida's brother, Hans Zumstein, attended the Chicago Theological Seminary with Adam, graduating in 1890.
Pastor Traudt founded and served the First German Congregational Church in the Globeville neighborhood of Denver, Colorado, from 1894 to 1899. The Globeville area was settled primarily by immigrants from Norka, and the church was known as the "Norkere Church."
Loveland, Colorado's First German Congregational Church, was organized on November 24, 1901, by the Reverend M.E. Eversz, D.D., and Rev. Traudt. It became the third German Congregational Church in Colorado. The previous two German Congregational Churches formed in Colorado were located in Denver.
Pastor Traudt returned to serve the First German Congregational Church in Globeville from 1901 to 1909, but his second term proved difficult.
The April 4, 1908 issue of The Denver Times reported:
Pastor Traudt founded and served the First German Congregational Church in the Globeville neighborhood of Denver, Colorado, from 1894 to 1899. The Globeville area was settled primarily by immigrants from Norka, and the church was known as the "Norkere Church."
Loveland, Colorado's First German Congregational Church, was organized on November 24, 1901, by the Reverend M.E. Eversz, D.D., and Rev. Traudt. It became the third German Congregational Church in Colorado. The previous two German Congregational Churches formed in Colorado were located in Denver.
Pastor Traudt returned to serve the First German Congregational Church in Globeville from 1901 to 1909, but his second term proved difficult.
The April 4, 1908 issue of The Denver Times reported:
Rev. Adam Traudt, pastor of the First German Evangelical Church of Globeville, a suburb of Denver, preached his sermon this morning under guard of three policeman stationed at intervals across the front of the church near the pulpit. This extraordinary scene was enacted as a result of a long quarrel with some of the members of the congregation. Last Wednesday evening at a church meeting a majority vote of one deposed the minister. He refused to recognize the vote and declared he would hold the fort against his enemies. In pursuance of this policy he spent Friday night in the church, heavily armed, to prevent the entrance of a hundred church-goers who gathered, determined to enter and put him out.
"I am not going to allow the affairs of this church to be run by a crowd of infidels who were excommunicated from the church more than two years ago," said Rev. Traudt." The trouble will probably be taken to the courts.
Pastor Traudt continued to serve as a German Congregational minister until 1910, when he left Denver to join an evangelical crusade in Mexico. Around 1912, Pastor Traudt settled in San Antonio, Texas where he became a Presbyterian.
In 1920, Adam and Ida continued living in San Antonio with their six children and Ida's mother. Adam had retired from the ministry and worked as a butcher in a meat market he owned.
Ida died on September 18, 1923, in San Antonio and was buried at the Roselawn Cemetery.
Adam Traudt died on May 27, 1940, in San Antonio and was buried near his wife at the Roselawn Cemetery.
In 1920, Adam and Ida continued living in San Antonio with their six children and Ida's mother. Adam had retired from the ministry and worked as a butcher in a meat market he owned.
Ida died on September 18, 1923, in San Antonio and was buried at the Roselawn Cemetery.
Adam Traudt died on May 27, 1940, in San Antonio and was buried near his wife at the Roselawn Cemetery.
Sources
Krieger, Jerry. "The Globeville church that ministered to the needs of Norkans". Norka Newsletter. Autumn 2004.
Ancestry.com
Norka database
"First German Congregational Church (Denver) Diamond Jubilee 1894-1969," by Rev. Howard K. Hammerland. Prepared by Chester G. Krieger. Schwartz Printing Co. 1969.
"How These Christians Love One Another!" The Humanitarian Review, Vol. VII, No. 1, Whole No. 68.
"Will Dedicate $20,000 Church," Loveland Reporter, Number 57, December 10, 1915.
The Chicago Theological Seminary Register, Volumes 1-4.
Obituary for Pastor Adam Traudt, Der Kirchenbote Kalendar, 1941.
Ancestry.com
Norka database
"First German Congregational Church (Denver) Diamond Jubilee 1894-1969," by Rev. Howard K. Hammerland. Prepared by Chester G. Krieger. Schwartz Printing Co. 1969.
"How These Christians Love One Another!" The Humanitarian Review, Vol. VII, No. 1, Whole No. 68.
"Will Dedicate $20,000 Church," Loveland Reporter, Number 57, December 10, 1915.
The Chicago Theological Seminary Register, Volumes 1-4.
Obituary for Pastor Adam Traudt, Der Kirchenbote Kalendar, 1941.
Last updated July 13, 2025