The Whitlash Church, the "Lord's Acre Plan" and the "E Hanging M" brand

Whitlash, Montana. Columnist’s note: In the narthex (entrance) of the Whitlash Presbyterian Church there is a ‘centennial quilt’ on display. The quilt commemorates the church’s hundredth anniversary celebrated in 2013 and is made of quilt blocks highlighting major milestones of the church—when the church was organized, when the present building was completed and other significant highpoints.

One of the blocks (see accompanying photo) is a drawing of the church building with the year 1945 along the bottom and the “E Hanging M” brand at a top corner. I didn’t realize the “EM” was a brand until o...