Town celebrates ‘lovely old church’

TREYNOR, Iowa — For 120 years, a chapel has peeked out of the cornfields along 330th Street northeast of Treynor.

The chapel has not had a permanent minister since 1921, but that hasn’t stopped hundreds of people from gathering at the Fairview Pioneer Chapel and Cemetery the last Sunday each August since 1956.

For more than 50 years, former residents, friends, family and ancestors of Washington Township’s founding fathers have been meeting annually on the shady lawn at Fairview Pioneer Chapel for the annual homecoming picnic and “spare and share” auction.

The tradition will continue on Sunday at 1 p.m. with a potluck picnic followed by the auction, in which reunion attendees bid on items brought by the others.

All proceeds from the auction go to the Fairview Pioneer Chapel Memorial Association for the upkeep of the chapel.

The chapel, one mile south of U.S. Highway 6 on 330th Street, was built in 1889 after attendance at the Washington Township schoolhouse began to exceed the building’s capacity.

Land was purchased from August H. Huelle north of the Fairview Cemetery, and local carpenters G.W. Briggs and his sons, George and Caleb, were hired to build the church.

A descendant of Briggs, Mary Sellers of Council Bluffs, now serves as the president of the Fairview Pioneer Chapel Memorial Association.

“My mother was a Briggs, which was one of the pioneer families in Pottawattamie County,” Sellers said. “It’s truly a ‘pioneer’ chapel; the lovely old church has seen many generations pass through its doors.”

No regular services have been held at the chapel since the last pastor — Harlan Streyfeller — left the church in 1921.

However, in 1955, Ben Taylor, who had been the sexton of the Fairview Cemetery for many years, died, and he wanted to be buried at the cemetery.

Neighbors gathered to clean the church for the funeral and decided it should be preserved as a memorial.

Ira Taylor of Denver paid the Evangelical Conference $500 for the property and donated it to the Washington Township trustees. The Fairview Pioneer Chapel Memorial Association was formed in 1956 to preserve and maintain the chapel and cemetery.

The steeple, which once could be seen for miles in the surrounding countryside, no longer stands after it was struck by lightning. But the chapel has special touches. Hand-carved woodwork encases the interior, and the siding is said to be similar to that of Mount Vernon.

This year the association is celebrating new stained glass windows that were installed above the front entryway, Sellers said. After 120 years, someone threw rocks through the original stained glass.

Each year the church comes to life also on Memorial Day weekend, when a special church service is held.

“We sing patriotic songs and say the Pledge of Allegiance,” Sellers said.

This year during the Memorial Day celebration, 9-year-old Sara Wede photographed an American flag through one of the church’s arched windows. Sara’s photo won honors at the East Pottawattamie County Fair and the Iowa State Fair.

Sellers said Sara has donated the framed and matted picture to be part of Sunday’s auction.

“We usually have garden produce but also some fun, unusual items,” Sellers said. “Some regulars act as auctioneers, and it is always a hoot. Plus, all the proceeds go to the Memorial Association.”

wAt the auction, Sellers said, there are both new and familiar faces every year.

“It is a wonderful part of the heritage and the history in Pottawattamie County. It is a good cause that keeps us connected with people we wouldn’t see otherwise,” Sellers said.

“It’s just a nice family event, and open to anyone who wants to come. So pack a potluck dish, a lawn chair and something fun to donate.”

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