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Prayers on the Prairie: Remote country church is close to the heart

Janelle Atyeo
Jan 20, 2019
Jan 20, 2019 Updated Feb 4, 2026

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Immanuel Lutheran Church, built in 1924, sits on a flat by White Clay Creek, surrounded by buffalo pastures on the Ted Turner ranch in northern Jones County, South Dakota.

Tri-State Neighbor photo by Janelle Atyeo

Barb Godfrey, who grew up in the church, displays a scrapbook of photos with a frame made of an old window from the 1924 church building.

Tri-State Neighbor photo by Janelle Atyeo

The inside of Immanuel Lutheran Church remains intact with pews, an altar and communion rail.

Tri-State Neighbor photo by Janelle Atyeo

Immanuel Lutheran Church shares a site with an old school house.

Tri-State Neighbor photo by Janelle Atyeo

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Janelle Atyeo

There’s a tiny country church in the sparsely populated hills north of Murdo, South Dakota, where the only sounds that break the silence are the chipping of birds and the creaking cattle gates moving in the wind.

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Janelle is editor of the Tri-State Neighbor, covering South Dakota, southwestern Minnesota, northwestern Iowa and northeastern Nebraska. Reach her at jatyeo@tristateneighbor.com or follow on Twitter @JLNeighbor.