P a g e 2 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y military dog training camp called Camp Rimini. Dogsled teams trained for search and rescue. The bark has quieted down these days. Some residents remain among old cabins, stores and the old schoolhouse. To Get There: Rimini is located southwest of Helena. From US-12, look for the Rimini Sign and take Rimini Road about 7 miles to the old camp. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Havre, Montana. Cottonwood Lutheran Church. The first Lutheran Church services were held at the home of Hilbert Peterson the parents of Arnold Peterson in 1914. Reverend Norby came out by horse and buggy to hold the service. In 1917, 10 families were members of the church. In 1920 a motion was made to buy the Presbyterian Church. Loans were made to do this and this was the beginning of the Cottonwood Lutheran Church. It is located 21 miles on the Wild Horse trail, and it is still standing there today. The pastors from First Lutheran Church came out to preach about once a month in the earlier days and then it got to be twice a month. With the cars it was easier for the people to attend. The members did the cleaning and repairs of the church. The pastors were paid $125 a year and this was raised to $225 in later years. Photo Courtesy of wetcanvas.com The money was paid by the donations of the members, but sometimes this was not enough so the ladies would take over and make money with food sales and selling fancy work. The ladies and families would meet at different homes during the summer and there would be a big crowd as a lot of the people would sit outside as the homes were not large enough to handle the crowd. I can remember the hostess would bake 12 to 15 cakes the day before aid and also served a meal. This was the days before deep freezes so the cakes had to be made fresh. As the younger people started to join the aid they said enough of that and everyone of the members would bring a cake, which was good. The lunch would be sold and that would also bring extra money which was given to the church. We had wooden benches to sit on and then we got wooden chairs and the men would sit on one side of the church and the women and children on the others. There was a big stove for heating on the women's side of the church and if you sat to close it got really warm. Subscribe to our Magazine for just $12 a year! Do you enjoy ghost town stories and photos? Grab yourself a print subscription to our magazine, Ghost Towns of Montana and Beyond! We publish quarterly and feature not just Montana but several other states as well! Also makes a great gift! Visit the following link to order via PayPal: https:// www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_sxclick&hosted_button_id=GHCYS7MES5K9S Or, send check or money order in the amount of $12 to Ghost Towns and History of Montana, LLC, P.O. Box 126, Warm Springs, MT 59756 Be sure to write MAGAZINE on your check. Thank you! After church the women would make coffee and a lunch. The men and children would play ball. The pastors taught us confirmation after services. In those days confirmation did not last very long. The church closed in 1953 as many of the members wanted their children to go to Sunday School and were going to Havre to church. The piano was given to First Lutheran and so was the baptism font. The chairs were sold or given to the members. The bell was sold to Russell Peterson and later his son Mark put it out on the Havre High football field to ring for touchdowns. There was vandalism to the inside of the church and the altar was broken up. This is some of the history of the Cottonwood Lutheran Church as we remember. -From The 85th Anniversary book of First Lutheran.
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