to the Painesville Speakers page.

In 1852, the Congregation invited Reverend Rausch to become their First Speaker. Reverend Rausch had been the Pastor of St. John's Lutheran Congregation one mile away, but left that group to guide the new congregation. Speaker Rausch conducted non-denominational services using a Sermon book for Christian Farmers, Predigten fur den Christichen Landmann. County records indicated that he had officiated at the marriages of several couples in the Chapel from March 1852 through July 1853. In the fall, Speaker Rausch left and moved on to another location.

Little is known of Robert Glatz. He was believed to have been a former Catholic priest from Hanau outside of Frankfurt. He evidently served as Speaker until his death in 1856. There is no grave for him in the cemetery and no county reccords exist that would indicate he officiated at any recordable ceremonies.

Christian Schroeter was the third and longest-serving Speaker of the Free Congregation. He had been a Lutheran minister in Germany, but resigned his pastorate and emigrated with his family to Wisconsin in March 1853. He joined the Free Congregation and in 1856, when Speaker Glatz passed away, the Congregation elected and appointed him as their Third Speaker.

Michael Biron , the Fourth Speaker at Painesville, was a prominent Milwaukee resident. He was an editor and publisher of several newspapers in the city. In April 1871, he founded Der Freidenker (The Freethinker). In 1876, he sold the paper to Carl Doerflinger, who kept the original paper's philosophical viewpoint. In 1879, Michael Biron founded Arbeiter Zeitung, a workingman's paper. It grew in popularity and circulation and was renamed on June 1, 1880, a Milwaukee Journal.

Mr. Biron had been the former Speaker of the Milwaukee Freie Gemeinde before commuting from Milwaukee to Painesville. The high point for both Speaker Biron and the Congregation was the 1901 Golden 50th Anniversary of the Painesville Congregation. A ceremony was held in the morning at the Chapel to mark the event. In the afternoon a celebration was held at Hauerwas Picnic Grove on County Road V with a band playing at the festivities.