New Wells

History

Johannisberg was one of the seven colonies established in 1839 in the Saxon Migration to Perry County, Missouri. Johannisberg is said to have been an offshoot of the Dresden settlement. In May 1840, the members of the New York group of Saxon migrants who had arrived in December 1839, and who had been members of C. F. W. Walther's congregation at Dresden, branched off and founded a village away in Cape Girardeau County. It is thought the split was caused by a quarrel over the sale of lots at Wittenberg to the general public. Members of the New York group violently opposed this move, which was proposed because of the failure of Wittenberg to grow as fast as had been hoped. They severed financial connections with the community, and withdrew into a separate settlement, although they continued other connections with the Saxons. Walther continued to serve both Dresden and Johannisberg until the end of 1841, but after his departure for St. Louis both were made branches of Altenburg. An account in the Western District Lutheran tells how in the late 1840s services were held on a hill near the town. In 1852, fresh settlers arrived from Austria, and these for a while continued to attend church at Altenburg in Perry County. At this time the place began to be known to the people of Altenburg by the name of , German for Austria. But because Apple Creek often rose and prevented attendance at the church in Altenburg, a separate church was organized in 1853 for Johannisberg. L. F. Dippold, pastor at Johannisberg, wrote that the Austrian settlers never called the place Österreich, but rather called it after their home city of Wels, located southwest of Linz in Upper Austria, and later the name was Americanized to New Wells.

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,853
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  2,609
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,487
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,395
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  2,375
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  2,116
• Downy Woodpecker

  Dryobates pubescens (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,976
• Turkey Vulture

  Cathartes aura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,830

Largest nearby schools

• NORTH ELEM.
  Elementary · JACKSON · 265 students · 14.7:1 ratio
• OAK RIDGE HIGH
  High · OAK RIDGE · 193 students · 10.7:1 ratio
• OAK RIDGE ELEM.
  Elementary · OAK RIDGE · 167 students · 11.9:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.64 — 2026-05-29
  12 km E of Williamsville, Missouri
• M 2.6 — 2025-11-01
  5 km SW of Puxico, Missouri
• M 3.07 — 2025-09-06
  4 km S of Puxico, Missouri
• M 2.72 — 2024-12-01
  9 km N of New Madrid, Missouri
• M 2.53 — 2024-03-05
  6 km ENE of Pinckneyville, Illinois
• M 3.07 — 2023-12-18
  5 km WNW of Waltonville, Illinois