296 Saxon Memorial Drive
Frohna, Missouri
573-824-5404
The Saxon Lutheran Memorial is an outdoor history museum in the setting of a log cabin village located on the homestead and farm on the Bergt Farm Complex. In the 19th-century German Kingdom of Saxony, Lutheran pastor Martin Stephan and many of his followers found themselves increasingly at odds with the established Lutheran Church. In order to freely practice their Christian faith in accordance with the Lutheran confessions outlined in the Book of Concord, approximately 600 people Saxon Lutherans left for the United States in November 1838. Their ships arrived January 5, 1839 in New Orleans. After spending some time waiting for that last ship, most of the remaining 750 immigrants settled in Perry County, Missouri, and in and around St. Louis. Among that group were Christian Adolph Bergt and Caroline Louise Voelker who married in 1841. In 1847 the Bergts acquired the property of an early pioneer named Thomas Twyman who settled in the area in 1820. The property would remain in the Bergt family until 1957. The property was purchased by the Concordia Historical Institute of St. Louis in 1961. The property was restored and in 1964 was dedicated and opened to the public as a "walk-in History Book" of German immigrant life in America.
The buildings of the Saxon Lutheran Memorial are all in their original locations and consist of a residential building with frame and hewn log sections, two log outbuildings whose original use is uncertain, a granary, and a timber frame barn which contains within it an earlier double crib hewn log barn. These buildings range in period of construction from the second quarter of the 19th century to the first quarter of the 20th century. The frugal sense to preserve and reuse that was a notable characteristic of the Missouri German probably explains how the Bergt Farm Complex remained intact. The Saxon Lutheran Memorial is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places and in 2009 it was recognized by the Friends of Missouri State Archive Association as the last complete home and farmstead complex of its era. The entire facility depicts aspects of the Saxon migration and settlement, and displays the domestic and farming artifacts of the 19th century Missouri German rural settlements in Perry County.
Visiting the Saxon Lutheran Memorial
March 1 - December 23
Tuesday - Saturday 9 am - 5 pm
Sunday 1 pm - 4 pm
Closed on Mondays
Closed on most holidays
There is no charge to visit the Saxon Lutheran Memorial, although donations are welcome.
A note about accessibility: There are no designated handicapped parking spots but visitors can drive up to the main building to be let off. The main building is accessible but many others are not. The restrooms are not constructed to accommodate wheelchairs.
Learn more about the community of Frohna