This photo shows Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Strasburg, North Dakota, an impressive brick church with Romanesque-inspired architecture. The tall central tower, topped with a cross, dominates the façade, while three arched wooden doorways with stone trim form the main entrances. Above them, round and arched windows add symmetry and detail to the design. The structure’s strong vertical lines and decorative brickwork give it a stately, enduring presence, reflecting the deep faith and heritage of the community it serves.

The majority of people of the Strasburg area descended from southern Germans who left Germany in the 18th and 19th centuries for the Black Sea region of the Ukraine, where czars had promised free land, freedom of religion, exemption from the military, and the right to maintain their German language and culture. When political changes threatened these freedoms, many left Ukraine beginning in 1870’s to the Great Plains of North America.

It is here where five young scouts from Ukraine arrived in September 1888. They liked the familiar landscape, and the following May, they returned with large groups of families from the Ukraine. Because the Homestead Act required immigrants to live on their land, settlers accustomed to living in villages and near their neighbors, contended with loneliness, along with an often inhospitable climate.

While their homes were modest and made of sod, the settlers found their sacrifice worthwhile, so that their church, also known as the living room of the community, was magnificent. Built to resemble many churches in Germany and the Ukraine, the St. Peter and Paul Church is an example of Romanesque architecture. Immigrants of the parish gave their money, their time to work on the structure, and some even gave their cattle. It was only a year and a half after the basement had been dug that people were celebrating Mass in their new church, on Christmas Eve 1910--22 years after the first immigrant scouts had come in search of their new home. The church stands 120 feet long, 50 feet wide, with the steeple 85 feet high.

Inside, you will notice the ornate statues seemingly frozen in time, and beautiful stained-glass windows displaying dramatic moments. You might search for the stained glass with a sheaf of wheat, likely donated by a farmer as a prayer for good crops. The crystal chandelier offers a familiar touch from 18th century churches in southern Germany. The plains might be lonely and the winters unbearably cold, but this offered warmth, companionship, and faith to endure on for generations.