Roles Lutherans played in the early history of the United States

Here are some little-known facts about the important roles Lutherans played in the founding and early history of the US as compiled by Pastor Harvey Krueger:

• Lutherans were in America seven years before the Pilgrims.
• The first book translated into any American Indian Language was Luther's Small Catechism.
• The first "Stars and Stripes" was made by Sara Austin and the Ladies Aid Society of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Philadelphia. It was presented to John Paul Jones and received the first salute granted to the Star Spangled Banner in Europe. It is now in the National Museum in Washington, D.C.
• Our Statue of Liberty was made by a French Lutheran, M. Frederic Bartholdi.
• It was a Lutheran boy who called a Lutheran sexton to ring the Liberty Bell.
• The Liberty Bell was hauled from Philadelphia to Allentown, PA, by a Lutheran, Fredrick Leiser, in 1777. The bell was then hidden under the floor of Zion Lutheran Church.
• The first president of the Continental Congress was a Lutheran, John Hanson who served until Washington was inaugurated.