Former Jeremiah Shumway home to left, diagonally lies the Portland Prairie Methodist Episcopal Church. Google 2012
The community cemetery was established very early on land donated by George and Ellen (Healy) Cass, but religious meetings were held in various homes and the McNelly School.
2012 – Headstone of Noah Shumway, Parmelia Aldrich Shumway, and their daughter Ruth Shumway Paine
Finally John McNelly brought plans for a church from Minneapolis and in 1877 the church was built next to the cemetery, and across the road from Jeremiah Shumway’s home.
Portland Prairie M E Church, 1909
Portland Prairie M E Church, 1999
2012 – to the left is the back of the church, in foreground is the cemetery, and at right in the background is the house that Jeremiah Shumway built.
The church is opened for a worship service at Christmas Eve, and the last Sunday of July is another service and a potluck outside.
Potluck, 2008
Queen Anne’s Lace on Portland Prairie
2012 – Men’s Chorus
This year it was raining so hard that the potluck was held inside the church.
July 29, 2012 Don Billhorn, Charlie Wray, Deborah Lapham Wray, Melissa Wray and Michael Wray.
2012 _____________ and Carol Meiners Horn, descended from Rufus and Hannah Shumway
July 29 2012 Eileen Lapham Felton and Catherine Col Manguson (Catherine is a descendant of Jeremiah & Mary Paine Shumway)
July 29, 2012 Eileen Lapham Felton and Bill Wiegrefe
July 29, 2012 Pastor David Gray, Karen Gray and Stuart Dibley
My Blog 
Might I ask who this is? My dad is in that last photo.
My grandmother was Ruth Elizabeth Shumway, her father was Herbert and his father was Jeremiah. I am Helen (Lana) Fredell and I live in Ojai, California.
Here are 3 links which might interest you…
https://ourfamilyhistoryblog.com/shumway-family
https://ourfamilyhistoryblog.com/portland-prairie-houston-co-minn This has a transcription, in 3 parts, of Old Times on Portland Prairie
https://ourfamilyhistoryblog.com/shumways-descendants-of-jeremiah-and-maria-paine-shumway/
I’ll be happy to help if you have questions.
I grew up on Portland Prairie. Have been going to the church service the end of July for 56 years. My Grandmother was a Lapham. My dad organizes the service. Will you be coming to the service again? It would be nice to meet you.
I still don’t know your name (Boo Who?) but I see you are a Dibley. The last time I was at the gathering it rained and we had the picnic inside the church. That was 2012. And I brought my sister once, and her daughter Heidi Manguson came several times (she used to live in LaCrosse). So I bet we have met. I’d love to visit again but I have had 2 ankle replacement surgeries – one last April and the other this February. The idea of traveling is a bit daunting right now,
You mention a Blog Page for the church? How might I find it?