Henry Melchoir Muhlenberg, considered to be the patriarch of the Lutheran Church in the United States, was born September 16, 1711 in Einbeck, Hanover, Germany. A graduate of the Georg-August University of Göttingen in 1738, Muhlenberg studied theology at the University of Halle. In 1742 he immigrated to Philadelphia in response to an official request from Pennsyvlania Lutherans for professional clergy. He organized the Lutheran congregation at Trappe, Montgomery County, and in 1748 established the Ministerium of Pennsylvania, the first permanent Lutheran synod in America. He helped to prepare a uniform Lutheran liturgy, and also put together basic tenets for an ecclesiastical constitution which most of the American churches adopted in 1761. Muhlenberg also traveled extensively along the east coast, serving as the leader of new congregations from Maryland to New York. His family had a significant impact on colonial life in North America. In addition to Henry’s role in the Lutheran church, his children became pastors, military officers, and politicians. Henry Muhlenberg died October 7, 1787 at Trappe, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.