One Township's Yesterdays Chapter LI  

The United Brethren Church

The original house of warship of the United Brethren Church at Burr Oak was a beautiful building, of frame construction, painted pure white. The windows were of stained glass. Above this graceful edifice rose abruptly a sharp-pointed steeple. That was before the church burned, in the summer of 1914.

In November, 1905, a new system of lights was installed in the church. This was a first class improvement; the church was made real up-to-date.

It was at about four o'clock on a Friday afternoon that the church burned. The date was July 21, 1914. A heavy storm was passing over the county, and in the midst of it the United Brethren Church at Burr Oak was struck by lightning and burned to its foundation. The building was valued at two thousand dollars, and the insurance policy had been allowed to lapse. Witnesses said a ball of fire seemed to drop from the heavens upon the tower, and almost instantly smoke appeared. In three-quarters of an hour, the building was in ashes.

After the fire, the congregation was faced with the necessity of starting over again, so far as a house of worship was concerned. There being no insurance money to use, it was a matter of raising some elsewhere, the establishing of a new building fund. No time was wasted; the church people pitched in at once, "rolling up their sleeves" for the task ahead of them. Socials and various such events were held by the women folks, adding splendidly to the fund. The men got together and cut lumber on the M. L. VOREIS lands, his Yellow River farm. The men did the cutting and the women served lunches to keep them going.

M. L. VOREIS donated all the rough timbers for the framework and other parts of the church structure requiring them, while the men of the church cut the timbers, prepared the logs, and hauled them to the saw mill (which, it seems, might have been LEW PERO's, if we are not mistaken) . The ladies of the church served dinners an long tables outside. The church rearing was a community affair in many respects.

So, today, a substantial church stands at Burr Oak for the United Brethren. Sturdily built, it will stand for many years unless disturbed by some act of Providence. The present structure is faced with cement blocks.