Zion Mennonite Church began to meet in 1851 and adopted its first Constitution in 1853. It is the oldest active Mennonite congregation west of the Mississippi, and is the birthplace of the former General Conference Mennonite Church.
Although the congregation began as a rural church, the Zion Mennonite congregation has met in its present building at the corner of Fruit and Park Streets in Donnellson since 1909.
Zion Mennonite Church was yoked with the Donnellson Prebysterian Church from 1970 – 2010, and from 1974 – 2010 the two congregations held joint worship services every Sunday. While each congregation kept its denominational identity, in many ways the congregation functioned as one church family. Members of both congregations grieved when the Donnellson Presbyterian Church closed its doors on January 31, 2010. The yoked years are an important part of ZMC history and the yoke continues to impact ZMC in many ways, largely because many former members of Donnellson Presbyterian Church remain part of the ZMC family.
The photo shows the historical marker which was placed in the Donnellson City Park many years ago. Another historical marker, dedicated to former pastor Christian Showalter, is located on the north side of the Primrose Blacktop, just east of the Zion Mennonite Cemetery.