'Christian Schooling' was one of the main aims of the 1877 Constitution of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Australia. Consequently, a string of dual purpose church/school buildings were built through the Barossa Valley and the position of teacher was an important one in the community. The Lutheran congregation at Friedensberg ('Hill of Freedom') was formed in 1859, and the church/school built in 1861. The school remained in the church building until 1913, when a new school was opened in Springton. With 48 other Lutheran schools this was closed by an Act of Parliament in 1917, due to strong 'anti-German' sentiment during the First World War - despite the fact that most of the children were third generation Australians. Today the original church and school is a museum of school history.