Nampa, a city (pop. 17,500 in 1955; 78,000 in 2005) located in Canyon County, Idaho, in the southwestern part of the state, about 30 miles (50 km) from the Oregon line. The average rainfall is only about 11 inches, but irrigation provides moisture for growing crops. Approximately 140 Mennonites (Mennonite Church) lived in this area in the 1950s, 60 percent of whom were farmers. David Garber was the first Mennonite to move here, coming in February 1899. Others soon followed, and in the same year the Nampa Mennonite Church was organized by George R. Brunk, Sr. The membership in the 1950s was made up of families from practically every state where Mennonites lived, with a few added from the community. The congregation operated two mission Sunday schools. The Nampa Mennonite Christian Day School was run by the local Mennonite church. The average enrollment was about 60, with a team of three teachers.

Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Scottdale, Pennsylvania, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 811. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.

©1996-2008 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.

To cite this page: