Friday, June 9, 2017 • Vol.28 No.33 • Neepawa, Manitoba
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MB BASEBALL HALL OF FAME:
2017 Inductees
Page 9-13
Congregation celebrating 140 years By Kate Jackman-Atkinson The Neepawa Banner In 1877, the first Presbyterian missionaries arrived in the Neepawa area. This year, the congregation tracing its history to those early settlers is preparing to celebrate 140 years of ministry in the Neepawa area. In those early days, worship took place in parishioners’ homes, then, the upper story of the Neepawa Post Office. The first Presbyterian church in Neepawa was built in 1882, at the corner of Brown Ave. and Isabel St. In 1891, the present church, located on First Ave., was built. The first services in this new church were held on March 15, 1892. The church, a Neepawa landmark and recognized historic site, was designed by Portage la Prairie architect James A. Macdonald. Macdonald was a Presbyterian who had experience as a construction supervisor with the U.S. Army and as a building supervisor for the Minneapolis public
The congregation at Knox Presbyterian has become inc r ea s ingl y di ver s e. M b a k u (c e n t r e) a n d Melvi’s Hamidu (second from right), originally from Cameroon, recently moved to Neepawa from Calgary and joined Knox. They had a little girl in February and in April, baby Echinominweh was baptized at Knox by Rev. Jeanie Lee (left), while god f ather Adrian De Groot (second from left) and godmother Sherry Grieder (far right) look on.
school board. He designed the church in the form of a cross, with the sanctuary set on the diagonal. The cost of the building, excluding furnishings, was $10,000. The original pews, which are still in use today, cost $1,200 and were purchased from Hamilton, Ont. When the new church opened, there were 197 members on the roll and in 2000, when the church’s history was compiled for a history book, some of their descendents still worshiped at Knox. Over the years, the church building has undergone work to improve its structural integrity. The first occurred shortly after it was built, when it was determined that the walls couldn’t carry the weight of the roof. At this time, two rods were installed across the church to stabilize and anchor the north and south exterior walls. In 1961, the church underwent another
renovation, this time, to better anchor the interior columns that support the roof. That project saw the
basement dug out and cement bearing walls and footings installed. At that time, Sunday School rooms
SUBMITTED PHOTO
PHOTO BY KATE JACKMAN-ATKINSON
Knox Presbyterian Church, on First St. in Neepawa, was built in 1891, at a cost of $10,000. The building is recognized as a provincial heritage site.
and washrooms were also added to the basement.
Facing challenges The congregation at Knox faced one of its first major decisions in 1925. On June 10, 1925, the Methodist Church of Canada, the Congregational Union of Canada and 70 per cent of the Presbyterian Church of Canada entered into a union, creating the United Church of Canada. The congregation at Knox voted to remain within the Presbyterian Church in Can-
ada, but today, they retain a close relationship with both the United and Presbyterian congregations. The other big change was the ordination of women into the Ministry. Prior to 1966, women could not be ordained but could have a role within the church as deaconesses or women missionaries, or within their local church administration. In Neepawa, the first woman joined Knox’s board in 1956. Continued on page 8