Welcome to Manganese!

The Manganese School Picnic

(Geene Foote fondly recalls the annual Manganese School picnic for District 86. Here is his account:)

Our school picnic was the final day of school. We had received our report cards the day before, and were excited because we were going to the picnic.

The picnic was always looked forward to, and everyone in our district was invited - pre-schoolers, babies, fathers and monthers, older kids already out of school, and everyone else, including the widows and bachelors.

It was 1933, in the depth of the Great Depression. The annual picnic was potluck, but being a small community just about everyone knew what they were more or less expected to bring.

About 10 a.m. everybody met at the school with their goodies, including a tub of ice for the lemonade. Many drove their own cars, but my dad was working, so I began to feel that we wouldn't be able to go after all, and I started to cry, as he had the car.

The Les Johnson family, which didn't have anyone in school, had brought their Model T truck and Les came over to me, picked me up, and said: "Your're going to ride with me." And my mother, her daughter in-law and children and my brother Billy climbed inside the box.

Les put me up on his lap and away we went. I will always remember that kind deed.

The picnic was at Rabbit Lake bridge, north of Cuyuna, and some tables were put up and the ladies put on some tablecloths and all that wonderful food, including Mrs. Travis's great donuts, were spread out in abundance, plus the lemonade.

Some older men started a fire and we had some races, including a wheelbarrow race, one-legged race, and the backward race. In this, we were teamed up with another person, back to back, and our legs were tied together so we faced opposite directions. That left one member of the team struggling to run backward each way, with a lot of cheering on the sidelines. There were other games as well.

Someone had brought along horseshoes, so the men stepped off the distances, and with a shovel turned over the sod, drove in a pipe and chose up sides. Then we kids cheered for our families as they pitched the horseshoes.

Some of the kids went swimming and dived off the wooden bridge between East and West Rabbit Lake and others just visited. Everyone had a good time.

Grace was said before we started eating at about 1 p.m. We had been munching on Mrs. Travis's donuts, all kinds of pickles, and all that wonderful food spread out on the tables.

Then we roasted our wieners (mind fell into the fire), and also toasted marshmallows.

The day was complete when I saw my dad and my older brother Lynol arrive. What a surprise! They brought ice cream - two big, tall metal five-gallon containers, which were placed in a tub of ice. They also brought a whole box of ice cream cones, and there was plenty of everything. Lots of food, lots of fellowship, lots of friendship and lots of price in our little community picnic.

About 2:30 p.m., the fire died down; the horseshoe pits were returned to put the earth green side up. There was still a good deal of food left over, and the ladies then shared the remainder among themselves, boxing and saving the bountiful plates to take to those who could not come, including Grandma Turcotte, who was an invalid.

The area was all cleaned up, and Les Johnson had brought a garden rake and returned the area to the way we found it. Two of the older boys went down to the lake, each getting a pail of water to put on the fire to make sure it was out.

We climbed into Les's truck and once again I sat on his lap, and as far as I was concerned I was driving that Model T truck. We were all very happy people.

Back at the school house, the neighbors of those who could not attend took the fixed plates to them as we said our good-byes. And we knew in our hearts - yes, even those of us who were so young - that God had favored us with not only a picnic but also a beautiful example of community pride and a perfect spring day.

We said goodbye to our teacher, who was going back to St. Paul for the summer, and we all looked forward to summer vacation - and next year's picnic!

The Church of Manganese Village

(This account of the Manganese religious life was provided by Gene Foote, whose family helped make the church possible. It provides a good example of how many early churches came to be, and the valued place they had in community life. The buildings themselves depended on having able-bodied parishoners with at least an instinctive knowledge of architecture and the willingness to donate materials and labor. The hardships of the ministers called to serve perhaps led to the saying "poor as a church mouse".)

From its incorporation in 1912 until the late 1930s, there was no local church in Manganese. But there was religious activity, because off and on someone would start a Sunday School, a prayer group, or Bible study groups. There was a week of Bible school in the summer, sponsored by the American Sunday School Union and Camp at Pillager, Minnesota.

In the early 1930s, Mr. and Mrs. Francis Chase of Crosby started a Sunday School, held in the Manganese school. Mr. Chase had been instrumental in starting the Assemblies of God Church in Brainerd, and he and his wife were members of the Crosby Assemblies of God Church. They were just good Christian people.

An item in the Manganese news column in the Crosby Courier during that time stated that there were 35 at Sunday school on the past Sunday.

About 1938-1939, a Rev. Warner came to Manganese to start a Wesleyan Methodist Church and Sunday School. He had a 1929 Model A Ford two-door and had added a dome light (a single light about two inches square installed near the center of the roof of the car), so he had a light in his car that he could read by. The only other interior light in the 1929 Ford was in the center dashboard. That also housed the ignition switch, the gasoline gauge, the amp meter and the odometer.

Rev. Warner lived in a Methodist parsonage just east of the Perry Lake School, on the farm land of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Prushek.

In the beginning, he held the church services in the school house on Wednesday evenings. Rev. Warner procured an organ, as the school had neither an organ or piano, and he asked Fern Foote (Mrs. Roy) to be the organist.

The early services were typical of the Wesleyan Methodist doctrine. There was an opening prayer, and two to three hymns (one could request certain hymns from the hymn book furnished by Rev. Warner).

Next the minister preached a sermon, using his Bible. In it, he had colored certain verses in red, green and brown to identify the passages he had used in previous sermons. Those attending sat at school desks and other chairs around the school room. There were four electric lights hanging from the ceiling with large 200 watt bulbs, which gave ample light to any evening event. In the front of the school room there was a large coal and wood stove with a sheet of metal jacket, which provided adequate heat for the room.

On the first night of Rev. Warner's service, the school janitor had let the fire go out and it was a bit chilly, until the other men got the fire going. After that, the janitor kept the fire going after school and the room was always nice and warm for the Wednesday night meetings.

Following the sermon, a unique collection plate was passed. It was a small light green enameled pan with green felt on the bottom, made from a phonograph record player.

After the offering, there were up to three hymns, and sometimes the congregation only sand the refrains. Rev. Warner then asked for the names of anyone who should be remembered in prayer, and offered the closing prayers.

As people left, the older boys would collect the hymnals and move the organ to the back of the room and place the hymnals on top of it. The older men would check the fire and the lights were turned out, the school house locked, and everyone walked home.

A bit later, Rev. Warner announced he would like to build a church and Lynol Foote deeded the church the lot where his home was located before he moved to Crosby.

The church that was built was about 24 by 40 feet, and it was built on the original concrete foundation of the Foote home. There was a small concrete-walled basement in the southwest corner, which became the location of one of the wood-burning barrel stoves used for heating the church.

The floor joists were rough cut 2 x 12s, placed 16 inches on center and the lining floor was rough unplaned white pine. There never was a second or finished floor. The exterior was built of 8-inch sawed logs, erected vertically. These logs were peeled pine logs, rough cut to a width of about 8 inch and cut square on three sides with the peeled round sides forming the exterior.

This method is a very cost-effective type of construction, as these logs do not require the use of studs. To keep the logs in place, they are nailed from inside horizontally on a 1x4 about every 24 inches from the floor to the top of the exterior walls.

The rafters were built as trusses, so the entire church was without interior walls, except for the entrance to the basement. Roof boards were rough cut pine and the roof cover was rolled granulated green roofing. As Gene Foote remembers, the church never had an interior ceiling and was open to the roof trusses.

There were 10 double-hung windows, four on each side and two on the north end, where the entrance was located. It had double varnished wood doors. Actually, the exterior doors and the electrical fixtures were the only items not produced locally.

To make the structure more solid, 1 x 4 inch pine strips were nailed to the inside of the sawed logs, over two layers of red common building paper, then about every 12 inches there were vertical strips nailed to the interior walls. This gave the interior of the church a woodsy flavor.

On the south end of the church there was an elevated platform, about 8 x 12 feet, where the alter and lectern were located. Alter seating consisting of four seats, which could be folded inward, were donated by Mr. Roy Foote. They had been salvaged from a shoe store. Even the Red Wing Shoe logo on the back of the chairs remained.

A barrel stove was located in the center of the room for additional heating. This was a vertical stove typical at that time, and there was the other barrel stove in the basement.

The original organ was moved over from the school house. Other furnishings consisted of the pews, which were bench style made out of 6 foot planned lumber with 2 x 4 frames and they were very moveable, so they could be moved closer to the barrel stove, or turned around to make pods for Sunday School.

Sunday School was at 9 a.m. and church service at 10 a.m. Occasionally, a prayer service was held on Wednesday night.

On occasion, revival meetings were held and guest pastors came in for services every night for a week or so.

The actual church was really a monument to Rev. Warner, as he did so much of the building by himself.

After several years, Rev. Warner and his family were called to a new church and he was replaced by Rev. Ward. It was during the war, with gas and food rationing.

Gene Foote said he doesn't know if Rev. Ward received a stipend from the church main office or not, but everyone did know that, at best, his money resources were limited. From time to time the little congregation would have a special service and the congregation would bring pounds of food stuff, such as canned fruit, vegetables, with a bushel or two of potatoes, beans, cabbage, rutabaga, home-grown apples, squash, pumpkins, along with sugar, flour, butter, coffee, tea, evaporated milk, lard, and sometimes some home smoked bacon, yeast, and limited amounts of fresh meat.

Once a surprise "pound shower" was held, without notice to Rev. Ward. His sermon that day was based on church giving and the parable of the loaves and fishes. Rev. Ward said that on the previous Thursday, the family was entirely out of food and he walked over to Perry Lake to see if he could catch some fish for dinner. The fish were not biting, but as he reached home some prankster, who must have been a very cruel person, had dumped some fresh potato peelings on his doorstep. With tears in his eyes, he told of gathering them up, taking them inside and washing them and boiling them for supper. And, actually, he said how happy they were to get them, even though they were intended as a cruel and vicious act.

He shared the table grace his family gave, thanking the Lord for the peelings and asking for divine guidance. Come Sunday, they found the secret pound shower, which revealed to all that our Lord does work in mysterious ways.

Generally there were about four Sunday School classes, based on the age of the children. And if it wasn't too cold, they each had a corner of the sanctuary. If it was very cold, they cuddled around the barrel stove and the Sunday School teachers all took turns and each had an abbreviated class.

Sunday School supplies came from the Wesleyan Church headquarters in Iowa.

When the church started, there were approximately 60 to 65 people in the Village of Manganese. Several families came to services from Trommald and from Mission, Wolford, Perry Lake and other communities. Attendance was usually 30 to 35, depending on the weather. There were two Roman Catholic families and they and their children came to Sunday School and to church.

The Christmas holidays were observed with Christmas trees and Christmas hymns and the Sunday School program.

One year, the church had a "watch" service, where they had a New Year's Eve supper and singing and fellowship until after midnight and the New Year. Most then went home.

About the late 30s and early 40s, some of the families moved to where they could find employment and there was gasoline rationing.

Young men were called into service and church attendance began to become less and less. The church still kept up with the concerns of family, friends and neighbors, with a special time at each service where the congregation asked for prayer and those away from home in the service. There was a service flag, and as men left for service a red star was added, until the church closed. Fortunately, there were no gold stars for the men who perished.

Sometime during the early 40s, the church was without a pastor. After the war, the church was sold and torn down, and it was the end.