American Legion Post #172, Mount Ayr IA

LESAN, HORNE, DUNCAN, MILLS, JENNINGS, ASKERN, SUMMERS, SHEIL, TALLMAN, SAWYER, RHODES

Posted By: Sharon R Becker (email)
Date: 9/9/2017 at 23:48:13

Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday, February 16, 2017
Page 9

SNAPSHOTS of HISTORY
By Mike Avitt

The American Legion, Inc. was started on March 16, 1919 by the American Expeditionary Forces in Paris, France. The organization was chartered by the United States Congress on September 16, 1919 and there are currently just fewer than 15,000 Amerian Legion posts operating in the U.S. today.

Ringgold Post 172 was organized November 8, 1919 with the electing of these positions: Dr. C. T. Lesan, Post Commander; Earl Horne, Vice Commander, C. F. Duncan, Adjutant; John Mills, Treasurer; Charles Jennings, Historian; and Robert Askern, Chaplain.

The Executive Committee consisted of Walter Summers, Ed Sheil, Floyd Tallman, Ernest Sawyer, and Clair Rhodes.

Plans for the first American Legion Hall were to add a second story to the newly-constructed city hall. This never materialized and my newspaper notes say the legion was located in the old Masonic Hall at 111 S. Fillmore in 1922. In 1924 they rented rooms in the Timby building on the southeast corner of the square. The legion boys finally found a permanent home in October 1928 when they bought the old Ringgold County Jail at 201 E. Monroe.

This would be the home of Ringgold Post 172 until 1978 when the current building was constructed. Most of the moving took place in the spring of 1978 and the dedication was held July 4th of that year.

I remember when the glass blocks that currently adorn the entrance were being sold as a fund-raiser in 1976 and 1977. They were $25 each, if I remember right, and that was a lot of money in those days.

The Congregate Meal Site was moved to the new legion building in July 1978 and it stayed there until a couple of years ago when it moved to the Lutheran Church. But you can still eat at the American Legion Hall on Sunday mornings.

All-you-can-eat breakfast is served every Sunday morning and the boys will even make you an omelet. It's good to eat before you go to church because then you're not sitting in church thinking about lunch. Not that I ever have ....

A big thanks to Ringgold Post 172 for all the help you've given to our veterans and all your contributions to our community!

Photograph courtesy of Mount Ayr Record-News
Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, September of 2017

Ringgold Documents maintained by Tony Mercer.
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