May 3, 1891
Friedrich August Crämer (1812–1891) was a German Lutheran pastor and missionary who answered the call to serve on the American frontier. Born in Klein-Langheim, Bavaria, he was arrested as a university student at Erlangen for participating in a revolutionary plot. While in prison, Crämer experienced a spiritual transformation, reasoning that if Christ redeemed sinners, He had also redeemed him.
Pastor Wilhelm Loehe recruited Crämer to lead a mission settlement in Michigan to serve the Chippewa people. In 1845, Crämer led a group of Lutheran immigrants to the Saginaw Valley, founding the town of Frankenmuth ("Courage of Franconia"). Crämer began teaching Indian children with the help of Jim Grant, a half-Chippewa interpreter, and baptized 31 Native Americans. He also established three mission stations and visited them monthly despite harsh conditions.
As the settlement grew, the community built St. Lorenz Lutheran Church, dedicated on Christmas Day 1846. However, the mission to the Chippewa declined as the tribe migrated westward. Facing theological conflicts with less-confessional Lutheran teachings, Crämer helped found the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod and became a professor at its seminaries. While teaching in St. Louis, he also organized and led a congregation of Irish and German immigrants without pay.
Crämer endured personal tragedies, losing three grown children and two grandchildren in 1881, followed by his wife’s death in 1884. Despite declining health, he led the relocation of the seminary to Springfield, Illinois. He died on May 3, 1891, from complications of influenza after training 635 ministry candidates. His legacy includes his missionary work, his contribution to the Missouri Synod, and his role in establishing Frankenmuth as a center of Lutheran faith.