August 24, 1881

At the new town of Manning fifty-three lots are already sold and there is talk of incorporating the town. The town expects to have 300 inhabitants before the end of the year.

October 1, 1881

Several buildings in course of erection at Manning were blown down by a tornado. The damage was not great. The large Catholic church at Vail, erected two years ago, was leveled to the ground.

October 5, 1881

S. L. Wilson of Manning is buying the material for a paper in the town for which he has chosen the name of The Monitor.

December 6, 1881

The first issue of the Manning Monitor announces that the first religious service in that town was conducted by Rev. Elliott of the M. E. Church on Sunday, the 4^th. The minister has arranged for regular services in the future.

March 10, 1882

A vote on incorporation at Manning resulted in 171 for to four against the proposition. At the ensuing election (March 10) for city officials John R. Collomore received 122 and J. R. Benson 82. George E. Hunt was elected recorder and Byron E. Whaten assessor; treasurer O. E. Dutton; marshal, H. Chapman; councilman-J. M. Turner, N. F. Shear, P. A. Emery, M. Hoffmann, J. L. McQuaid, R. F. Tidd. The number of votes cast was 209. At the first meeting the council passed an ordinance fixing saloon licenses at $300 with a bond of $1000 for non-violation of the law. The birth of Manning as a municipal corporation was attended with a great deal of excitement and ended in a crushing defeat to what was known as the "Geo. Makpeace" faction.

April 10, 1882

A fire at Manning, originating at 8 o' clock in the (Sunday) evening in the Heintzelman & Moody's dry good and grocery store, destroyed thirteen buildings. The origin of the fire is not known but incendiarism is suspected. It was discovered in the rear of the Heintzelman & Moody store, where the fire had made so much headway it was impossible to save any but a small part of the stock, valued at $7000. There were neither fire apparatus nor water at hand with which to check the flames, which burned until all of the material was exhausted to feed upon.. The entire population turned its attention to saving as much of the moveable property as possible. The loss was as follows: Collamore & Priest, general store, $4000; Wetherill & Marsh, hardware, building $1600, stock, $3000; Whaten Bros., groceries, building and stock, $5000; Stocker's butcher shop, $200; Garstenberg's saloon, building and contents, $1600; Hoffmann & Shook dry goods, $3000; M. B. Freelove, three buildings, $3000; Webb's saloon and boarding house, $2500. A large portion of the possible loss was saved, as the fire did not burn rapidly on account of previous wet weather, and stocks could be carried to safety.

June 21, 1882

A man named Schnetzer died at Manning from the smallpox in an aggravated form.

September 13, 1882

The vote at Manning on the question of issuing $5000 bonds to secure a depot of the Milwaukee was carried by 140 for to three votes against.

January 10, 1883

McPherson Post G. A. R., is organized at Manning with the following charter officers: Commander, S. E. Whitcher; S. V. C., Joseph Moore; J. V. C. , Geo. Stocker; Officer of the Day, H. Stocker; Adjuvant, C. M. Failing. The city council of Manning has purchased ten acres in the N. E. ¼, Sec. 18, Warren township, to be used as a cemetery, paying $45 per acre.

January 24, 1883

Rev. Elliott, pastor of Manning circuit, M. E. church, has raised a subscription of $900 toward erection of a $1200 church in the Rogers neighborhood to be erected in the spring.

August 26, 1883

Presbyterian church at Manning dedicated, Rev. R. F. Coyle of Fort Dodge officiating, assisted by Rev. T. S. Bailey. The cost of the chruch building is $2000.

September 28, 1887

J. W. Lindsay, of Manning, was indicted by the grand jury for "having appeared in court as an attorney in violation of law". The court exonerated Lindsay on the ground that, not being admitted to the bar he was not a lawyer and consequently not amenable to the statute forbidding a peace officer to appear as an attorney-Lindsay being the town constable.

The first newspaper at Manning was started shortly after the town was founded, in November, 1881, by S. L. Wilson. After running the Monitor for nearly two years he relinquished ownership in favor of Seth Smith, one of the pioneer business men of the town. He, in turn, sold to a partnership consisting of B. I. Salinger, L. P. Bingham and C. S. Lawrence, the last named having been connected with the paper as foreman since its beginning. But in 1884, Salinger & Brigham sold their interest to Mr. Lawrence, who continued as sole proprietor till 1893, when on account of failing health he disposed of his interests to A. L. Heicks, who soon sold to Funk & Salmen, and shortly after the paper passed into the hands of E. M. Funk, who took into partnership his son Erwin, the firm name becoming Funk & Funk. Though a republican paper at the start, it was made democratic by S. C. Lawrence, who declared that because of the position of the republican party on the liquor question in the state, he was impelled to support the other party. In 1896 Bennett Brothers purchased the plant from Funk & Funk and after keeping it a year sold to W. E. Sherlock, who had come from Sigourney, Iowa. The latter, however did not retain ownership for long but sold to Charles Haworth. Subsequently G. W. Laflar became publisher of the Monitor, and so continued until the year 1910, when W. H. Mantz, the present proprietor took charge.

The Manning Herold, the German paper, was started by Bertrand Krause, in February, 1894, and continued under the same management until the death of its founder, June 1907. It then passed into the hands of Peter Rix, who sold it in 1910 to its present publishers and editors.

Among the unsuccessful attempts to establish other papers in Manning was that of the News, started in 1885 by Theodore E. Palmer, and sold in the same year to W. J. Morrow. In 1888 the plant was destroyed by the fire that burnt E. C. Perry's store, on the second floor of which it was published. In 1889 the Free Press was started by G. W. Laflar, Charles C. Coe, but it had a checkered career, passing successively under the ownerships of Coe & Laflar, C. E. Ferguson, Martin Brothers, G. W. Laflar, Charles Haworth, and finally what was left of it, in 1895, was merged into the Monitor, then the property of Funk &b Funk.

The first bank was that of O. B. Dutton & Son. This bank was the antecedent of the First National bank, which was organized with D. W. Sutherland, as president and O. E. Dutton, as cashier.

The first physicians in the town were R. R. Williams, still in the practice, and T. S. McKenna, who died in 1908.

The first school in Manning was opened in the fall of 1881 with Benjamin I. Salinger as teacher. An extract from the Monitor of December 29, 1881, say: "The school has been in operation for one month past under tuition of Mr. B. I. Salinger and the numbers are about ninety pupils. The school will be divided after the holidays and the primary department put into the hands of Mrs. Winter." B. I. Salinger remained in charge of the school for two years.

The population of Manning in 1890 was 1131; in 1900, 1169; and in 1910, 1434.