My grandparents William and Daisy Manges were married in the Marshall County jail in 1907. Here's the story:
A young couple from the Frankfort-Barrett area who were married in the county jail parlor 60 years ago celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary at Frankfort recently.
As the courthouse was in the process of being remodeled Aug. 27, 1907, Sheriff Barrett, also of the Frankfort vicinity, invited William Manges and his fiancee, Daisy Viola Mosher, to be married in the jail parlor.
The couple accepted, and Judge Loch performed the simple ceremony with Sheriff Barrett and wife, the latter's sister, Miss Ethel Matthew and Alta Mosher, sister of the bride as witnesses. Their first home was on the Kennedy ranch east of Frankfort, and they lived on farms in the Frankfort vicinity until retirement in 1942.
Farming in the horse and plow era, the couple teamed together to provide a full table, as they raised vegetables which Mrs. Manges canned, and meat. Wheat and corn were taken to the mill at Blue Rapids and ground into four and meal.
It was a busy life for them, they recalled as their children began to arrived. The first was Lenora May in June 1908, who was joined by Harriet Ruth in October 1909. A third daughter, Rachel Rebecca, born March 15, 1913, died at 33 in 1945.
The couple will always remember the cold and windy night of Feb. 15, 1916, with the impending birth of a baby. Dr. Brady's buggy broke down enroute. Mr. Manges called a nearby neighbor, and with Mrs. Ford and with the help of Mary Mosher, the baby was born without the benefit of a physician. Mrs. Manges was told the baby was a boy, and she said, "God save him."
Two winters later, the baby, who had been named David Charles for his two grandfathers, became ill with pneumonia. The couple worked and prayed to save him, with the help of neighbors. Six weeks later the crisis broke and he lived to lead a normal life. Another boy, William Guy, was added to the family Oct. 18, 1919, but only lived five years.
During World War I, Manges served in the Home Guard and trained every Wednesday night at Frankfort, where the company drilled and marched on Main Street.
Their first car, an Overland touring, which they purchased in 1916, gave Cricket, the family driving and riding horse, a rest from transporting the family to picnics, carnivals and the chautauqua in summer; skating and card parties in winter and other community gatherings.
The father was insistent that the children attend school, regardless of weather, and sometimes took them by horseback or sleigh. Oftentimes by lamplight he mended the children's school shoes.
After the marriage of their daughters and son, Mr. and Mrs. Manges sold their farm equipment and purchased a home in Frankfort, where they were employed as high school custodians and he was also employed at the sale barn and by the township. In recent years his dream was fulfilled when a new home was built.
