CEDAR COUNTY, NEBRASKA - Magnet Christian Church

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         Permission granted by SHIRLEY DAWSON.

	 Published in: The Magnet Centennial Book
	 Article written by Shirley Dawson.

         

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Magnet Christian Church
 
The Church of Christ of Magnet bought lots 4,5, and 6 of Block 8 on May 
29, 1903 for $200.00. Trustees of the church were J.W. Furness, Martin 
Stober, R.H. Sinkley, Nels Swanson and Bolivar Mayden. The church building 
is the former school house. When the new school house was built, it was 
bought from the town and moved onto the church lots. Many of the first 
members had been members of the Oliver Grove Church, located 2 miles east, 
5 miles north and 1 mile east of Magnet on the north side of the road. It 
is said that some of the lumber from the Oliver Grove CHurch was used to 
build onto the west side of the church. Lee Beaudette recalled his father, 
John, telling of hauling some of the lumber to town with a team and wagon.                                                       

The name of the church according to the abstract was the Church of Christ 
but early in it's history it became known as the Christian Church. There 
was a chain hitching rail on the south side of the church and it was full 
on Sunday mornings. A pot belly stove heated the building and the past 
record books show that several young men and women earned a little spending 
money by starting the fire on Sunday morning.

A 1910 picture of the front of the church shows that the back rooms had not 
been added onto the church but a sign on the wall tells of a special offering 
to be taken for a church extension. At first the church was lit by kerosene 
lamps. Electric lights were installed in August 1932.

The parsonage basement was started around 1916. Pastor M.S. Carpenter finshed 
the house in 1918. Very few ministers lived in the parsonage, it was rented 
out. In 1931, Guy B. Dunning found the church in a very run down condition and 
without a minister. Regular church services were not being held but a few 
devoted christian women continued to meet on Sunday mornings to study the word 
of God and to have communion. Guy B.,who ministered to several churches in the 
Elkhorn Valley, opened wide the doors of the Magnet Church and soon people begin 
to pour in again.

Many improvements have been through the years. In 1948, the pot belly stove was 
replaced by an oil burner, in 1955 hard wood flooring was laid and carpet put on 
the altar area, in 1957 a furnace replaced the oil burner; new pews, communion 
table and pulpit were purchased in 1963. In 1976, the sanctuary was paneled, new 
windows installed, carpet laid and new song books pirchased. The fall of 1980, 
the front entrance was torn off and a larger side foyer with a restroom was built. 
A large bell was bought in 1991 and was placed on a brick stand just north of the 
church. The original bell was sold in the early 50's when the bell tower was removed 
from the church building because of leakage and decay of the roof.

Several ministers have served the church. It is believed that the first minister was 
S.A. Koop. Since the early 40's the ministers have been sturdents from the Nebraska 
Christian College of Norfolk.. Some members of the congregation that have gone on to 
become ministers are Roy Coop, Carroll Gunderson, Marvin Delozier, John Dittmer, Paul 
Dittmer, Roland Crelin, Glen, Dale and Leo Williamson.

As the years past, the town of Magnet's population begin to dwindle and so did the 
congregation of the Christian Church. The last service to be held there was Memorial 
weekend Sunday in 2008 and the church bell was rung for the last time after a closing 
ceremony, marking 105 years of service to the people in the Magnet area.