In the year 1636, the first colonists came from Bergen and Geneseo, New York, organized as a church in the wilderness. They set forth for the betterment of their families and to plant the institutions of religion and education in a new colony. They slowly made their way in the storms and cold of autumn in covered wagons and suffered the privations of winter in rude cabins hastily built on the virgin prairie. With courage, endurance, and faithfulness, they erected a church and school and founded a Christian community. Their religious, cultural, and social influence survived and has shaped the life of this community to this day.