It might not ring any bells in young locals’ minds, but at one time, Garland would gong — and now it’s chiming in again, just like it did more than a century ago.

On Saturday, April 9, the Garland Community Church of God got its bell back, ending its decades-long absence. It was previously at the Homesteader Museum in Powell.

Garland has been around since 1901. The school, church, community hall, etc. have been standing more than 100 years.

John Seitz of Deaver, Pastor Shane Legler and Luke Carter, both of Powell, muscled the 190-pound cast iron bell into the belfry with the aid of a crane.

It’s a gorgeous view from the roof with a field harrowed precisely behind and below the church, and Heart Mountain flaunting patches of snow like freshly laundered sheets on a clothesline. More distant mountains appear diminished by Heart’s center stage standing.

“You got a billion-dollar view up here,” Seitz said.

The steeple offers shade, and a mild breeze provides a pleasant work environment for the guys aligning the bell on its horizontal shaft.

“Bong,” sounds the bell, sounding a bit like Big Ben.

“OK, it works,” Legler said.

“That’ll ring your bell,” Seitz laughs.

“I lived over in Deaver, but I went to church here,” said Seitz, 66, who recalls attending the Garland church at age 6.

Years ago, the bell had to be removed for safety reasons.

On a lark, kids would shinny up a stovepipe to give the bell a jingle, Seitz said.

“It was kind of a little adventure to ring the bell,” Legler said of the youthful escapades.

Exactly when the bell was removed remains a bit of a decades-old enigma.

Johanna Cubbage of Garland speculated the bell was removed in the 1970s when the second floor, formerly an open space, was remodeled for a parsonage.

Legler hypothesized the bell was removed prior to his church purchasing the building, which previously served as a community hall and school.

Today the church is also a community hall, where clubs meet and citizens vote, Seitz said. It recently needed new siding and the money was raised in two weeks.

“The community’s always been very supportive,” he said.

The museum was happy to return the bell at no charge. “Rowene (Weems, museum director), the museum, they were great too,” Legler said. “We’re sure appreciative of them.”

It was the original bell, Seitz said. Now, the bell is back in its rightful place. “The church bell is part of our history,” Legler said.

Multiple uses over the years

The building was constructed in 1913 and used as a school for 10 years before Garland students began attending school in Powell, Weems said. The bell was used to call students to class.

Back on terra firma, Seitz indicates three steps that allowed yesteryear’s shorter rider to deftly dismount. Once off their horse they could turn it out in a small pasture before embarking on their scholarly pursuits.

The Community Church of God was established in 1955 in Garland, Legler said. “I believe they got it from the East End Club for $1.”

Johanna Cubbage moved to Garland in 1961 when she married Warren Cubbage. The church served as a meeting place, she said.

“I remember going down there to the community club,” Cubbage said. “That was the hub of all the activities in the early ’60s.”

Potluck dinners were served downstairs and dances upstairs in the 1940s and 1950s, “... and maybe even earlier than that.”

A home demonstration agent would call once a month to teach wives housekeeping skills. Ladies would bring a potluck and at noon, the men would come in from the fields. Once the guys returned to work, the home economic programs would begin.

An apartment was built upstairs to serve as a parsonage.

Now a pulley descending from the steeple would reach the pastor’s second floor study to ring the bell, Seitz said.

One can easily discern the Big Horn Mountains from the kitchen window. “The view is incredible up there,” Cubbage said.

Ringing dedication

Tentatively, there will be a dedication once the the finishing touches on the steeple and bell pulley are completed. They are hoping to have the work completed by the National Day of Prayer, Thursday, May 5. “That’s our goal,” said Legler. “And, we’d like to invite the community.”

Sunday services include fellowship at 9 a.m., Sunday school at 9:30 a.m. and the main service at 10:30 a.m.