-(pews clicking and clanking) -(classical music) (classical music) (classical music) - [Narrator] A Catholic and a Protestant walk into a church.

Not the start of a joke, the start of a story about a unique place where both could have gone to services a century ago, a tiny building in a tiny village near giant Lake McConaughy.

(classical music) (classical music) (classical music) (birds chirping) - [Barbara] It is touted as the only one in the world.

- [Kathy] Most people are amazed at what's actually here.

That it's here and how special it is, and we think it's a real treasure.

(classical music) - [Barbara] It's just really a special place.

- [Narrator] Here's how it works.

There's a Catholic altar on one end, Protestant altar on the other.

In between, rows of pews on hinges that flip whatever direction is needed.

Same with kneelers, pulled out from either direction.

- [Barbara] That's the reason why Keystone was invented, because the ranchers didn't want to take their cattle across that river - Right.

- with the quicksand.

- [Narrator] Barbara, the Catholic, and Kathy, the Protestant, are two of the less than 100 folks who live in Keystone.

They keep The Little Church and its history from fading away.

- [Kathy] Dedication was Reverend Dean George Beecher of Omaha, and he was Episcopalian.

He wasn't any of the three (chuckles) - Really?

- that we know about.

- Well, that's interesting.

- I didn't know that either.

- [Narrator] It started long before Kathy and Barbara were around.

Keystone was founded in 1906 with a hotel, some businesses but no church.

(classical music) - [Kathy] The idea was brought by a group of teenage girls who were called the king's daughters, and they were under the direction of Mrs. Georgia Paxton.

Mr. Paxton, her husband, Bill Jr, they had a ranch just northeast of town here, and his father, Bill Sr was big in the Omaha stockyards and so they had bought land out here in ranch.

- [Barbara] So the girls decided we needed a church and they went about having sales, bazaars, an oyster supper at one time.

- [Narrator] The girls raised several hundred dollars to get things started.

The Paxton family kicked in the rest.

They hired noted Omaha architect Thomas Kimball to design the church.

Kind of a small job for the MIT and Paris educated designer whose credits include the Trans-Mississippi Exposition, Burlington Station, and St. Cecilia's Cathedral.

(train horn hooting) Trains brought lumber from Omaha and a letter from the Vatican.

- [Barbara] Had to get a dispensation from the pope to have a Catholic altar in one end and a Protestant altar in the other.

And they got that.

- [Kathy] The special dispensation was shipped from Rome to New York City and there it was handed over to church officials who brought it out here on the railroad.

(classical music) - [Narrator] And the idea for the two-way pews?

(pews clatter and click) - [Barbara] Mrs. Paxton was very well traveled and we believe she's the one that came up with the idea for the conversion of the backs.

Got the idea from the cable cars in the big cities that went one direction, couldn't turn around, so they flipped the seats and came back.

(pews flipping and clicking) (gentle music) - [Narrator] The Little Church opened in 1908 with a big dedication ceremony.

The unique concept occasionally got attention in other parts of the country.

One article called it "eminently sensible, neighborly and effective."

With visiting clergy, Catholics and Presbyterians alternated Sunday worship times here at first.

When the Presbyterians left in 1926, a Lutheran congregation moved in.

When the Catholics left in 1929, it was just a Lutheran church until closing two decades later.

(gentle music) - And Rex was the last baby baptized in this church during regular services - for the Lutherans.

- Oh really?

I didn't know that.

- 1949.

Yeah.

- [Narrator] Barbara and Kathy helped get it fixed up a few years ago and are preserving its history.

There are occasional special services, events, even weddings here.

(gentle music) Tour groups can see original bibles, hymnals, and journals showing how much each Sunday school kid put in the offertory.

It's a step back into early 1900s life in a small frontier town.

(gentle music) - [Barbara] The organ in the corner is original.

It's a pump organ.

You have to pump your brains out, but you can get music out of it.

(chuckles) ("Amazing Grace") To be able to have two different congregations hold services here spoke to the unity of the community and how they were able to work together and build something that was really beneficial to everybody.

("Amazing Grace") - [Kathy] I think it speaks well to the pioneer spirit.

We figure out what we need and we figure out a way to do it and we can usually get along while we're doing it.

And I think it's a simple solution to so many issues today if we could just all do this.

("Amazing Grace")