Rev. Johann Friedrich Koestering was born on February 20, 1830.  For a while he was pastor of the churches in both Altenburg and Frohna.  It was during these years that new church sanctuaries were built at both of these congregations.  In 2017, Trinity, Altenburg will be celebrating the 150th anniversary of the dedication of its present church which was finished in 1867.

We at the museum also talk about what we call the Koestering Hole.  For some reason, the church records for the years he was at Trinity are missing.  No one knows why this is the case. They could have been lost.  They could have burned.  Or he could simply have not done a good job of keeping records.  It is frustrating for those who come to do research here.  All we can say is that there is this Koestering Hole in our records.  There is still a small glimmer of hope that these records may be found someday.