Letters and Comments for April 28, 2009

Letters and Comments for April 28, 2009

Building served LDS

To the Editor:

Your Feb. 7 article gave quite a lot of the history of the Kiddle Building in Imbler, but your informants were possibly ignorant of the use of the building by the local Mormon church.

In the winter of 1939-40 or possibly ’40-41 — I am not at all certain which — the Imbler LDS Ward church building burned. The church building, which had been used by the Mount Glen Ward, was standing empty since the congregation had been absorbed by one of the La Grande wards.

The Imbler congregation obtained the Mount Glen building, and in the summer following the fire my father, C.W. Ragsdale, prepared the Mount Glen building for moving. Lamar Westenskow, using his McCormick track tractor, then pulled it across the valley on the unpaved roads. My two sisters remember riding in the church on its journey. After its arrival in Imbler and spotting on the cleared site of the old building my father did the necessary work to set it in place and prepare it for use.

During the interim between old and new buildings the congregation worshiped upstairs in the Kiddle Building.

I am not certain how long all of this took. I believe probably less than a year.

Your article mentioned the use of the building as a skating rink. My next-older brother spent a great share of his time there, tending to the skates and helping with the operation of the rink. Since he was barely in high school and should have been home doing his chores and going to bed at an early hour this certainly caused some friction in his home life.

Bob Ragsdale

Formerly of Imbler