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The 125th West Reserve Anniversary

Celebrations Peaked this Summer

by Lawrence Klippenstein

Jake P. Hamm, an 83-year-old resident of Neubergthal extending an official welcome on July 1 at the homecoming and the unveiling of a Parks Canada plaque with commemorative inscription designating the Mennonite Street Village as one with national historical significance. Courtesy of Conrad Stoesz

A few people wondered why we needed a celebration when the centennial activities of 1974 had taken place only 25 years ago. It may have been millenium talk that helped to get another celebration underway. Or perhaps it was the feeling that a revisiting of this Mennonite story would be good for all of us somehow.

The August 1, 1999 experiences at The Forks and the Mennonite Heritage Village climaxed another round of reflections on the coming of Mennonites to Manitoba in 1874. As many as 3000 persons may have joined these worship services last year. A good deal of reporting and comment resulted also.

A group of planners with the Hanover Steinbach Historical Society had helped to make the former East Reserve somewhat of a focal point for last year’s festivities. This year (2000) that celebration shifted to the Pembina or West Reserve since its first Mennonite settlers arrived at Fort Dufferin, or West Lynne/Emerson, in 1875, also 125 years ago.

The Manitoba Mennonite Historical Society headed up the programs but much initiative emerged and remained with local groups. The best example of this was probably the Peter Wiebe clan’s decision to erect a memorial to recall the leadership and ministry of Aeltester Johann Wiebe, the first bishop of the Reinlaender Mennoniten Gemeinde which formed the main Mennonite church body of the West Reserve in the early decades.

An unveiling of the Wiebe memorial took place on July 22 with a plaque placed on the first Mennonite church building (now a community centre), erected in the village of Reinland, Manitoba (west of Gretna) in 1876, and a cairn at the old cemetery of the village of Rosengart, not far away, where Wiebe resided at the time.

A special West Reserve history insert issued on June 26 in the local papers of Altona, Winkler, Morden and Carman had helped to raise awareness of what was to come. It also invited readers to come to Fort Dufferin on the Red River (just north of Emerson) to commemorate the arrival of the first Mennonite families of the area.

Some 1500 persons responded to the invitation on Sunday, July 16. For most people it was a first visit to this locality. The tent set up for the occasion could not hold all the attendees. However, the pleasant Dufferin park surroundings, good weather and few mosquitoes, and, of course, the excellent contributions of a wide-ranging number of speakers and music groups gave a good space for the two programs of the day. An afternoon worship service and a Christian music concert in the evening brought an inspiring focus to the gathering.

By that time, the communities of the area had several earlier equally significant events behind them. One was the June 30/July 1 village of Neubergthal unveiling of a new sign set up to highlight the village as national historic site, so designated by Parks Canada, and hosted by the local heritage society. Not far away, and almost

simultaneously (on July 1-2) people who once knew Edenthal and Edenburg (just to the south of Neubergthal) as their home villages, were recalling that wonderful time at a reunion held in Gretna and the former site of Edenburg just to the east of town. Four hundred or more people were present at each of these occasions.

By then family gatherings of the region had begun. Voths were meeting at Morden that weekend, while Heinrichs (at Gretna), Schroeders (at Altona), Wiebes (two different clans, at Providence College, Otterburne and Reinland/Rosengart), Hoeppners (at Steinbach, East Reserve, and Waldheim, West Reserve), Epps (at Winnipeg) and Bergens (at Gretna) were gearing up for gatherings of their own perhaps others, very specifically put a visit to Fort Dufferin on their own program.

Then came the August 26 Post Road Memorial Trail inaugural tour to cap all these events, as it were. It took two bus loads of celebrants from Fort Dufferin, where the first memorial post was put in place, all the way across the former West Reserve to a community now extinct, Mountain City, located about seven miles south of Morden and adjacent to Stanley Park.

Here the last post of the memorial trail was put in place, while Rev. Abe Rempel of the Old Colony Mennonite Church shared some very meaningful remarks as he compared the new memorial trail to the spiritual trail on which God wants to lead His people in life. Ten sites, all twelve of which were also given a lectern-mounted plaque to highlight the place of these communities on the Post Road many decades ago.

A series of radio spots of CFAM/CHSM had brought Mennonite heritage vignettes to listeners throughout the summer. Some of these will reappear as a special column in the local papers cited here earlier on. Copies of the insert published on these themes and a special West Reserve souvenir pin are still available for those interested. Papers are with the editors of the towns and the pin can be had by calling Conrad Stoesz at 888-6781 and 669-6781. A Low German drama video can be purchased this way as well.

We want to thank all those who helped make these celebrations possible, and who supported the program financially. If you would like to make your own gift to help, contact the number given above. We hope you were able to take part somewhere on the 125th celebrations program, last year or this one, and blessed by doing so.

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Last modified October 30, 2000.

© 2000 Mennonite Heritage Centre and the Centre for Mennonite Brethren Studies.
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