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Town Of Manning, Iowa Rooting For The Broncos

Editor's Note: In the video report, CBS4's Jeff Todd erroneously reported that tight end Joel Dreessen is the only Denver Bronco to have graduated from a Colorado high school. In fact, defensive lineman Mitch Unrein also graduated from a Colorado high school in the town of Eaton. His parents and grandparents have also lived in Colorado.

MANNING, Iowa (CBS4) – CBS4's Jeff Todd is on his "Drive To The Championship" and made a stop in Manning, Iowa where the residents will be pulling for the Broncos in the Super Bowl.

Broncos player Joel Dreessen's grandparents actually live in the town of Manning.

Manning is a mostly German community with a population of 1,500 people. The brick main street is 99 years old and the bricks haven't been replaced.

In the 90s the town of Manning wanted to do something for its German heritage.

"We have the only authentic German hausbarn in America," said Manning resident Ron Reischl.

"It's a hausbarn because people lived in it with their animals."

Hausbarn
(credit: CBS)

The Manning hausbarn was originally built in 1650 in Germany where it was about to be torn down.

LINK: germanhausbarn.com

"They disassembled the barn, marked the pieces and put them in a shipping crate and shipped it to Iowa. We've reconstructed it with the help of German carpenters," said Manning resident Warren Puck.

It took almost a decade to rebuild.

"Of course the hatch roof is one of the neat features of the Hausbarn. Those reeds were harvested in the North Sea and bundled up and shipped over here. Craftsman from northern Germany came and assembled the roof," said Puck.

Residents have a saying about the town that goes, "Manning. It's refreshing."

Come Super Bowl Sunday the laid back town will be rooting for more than just Peyton Manning.

"Now it's definitely a Broncos territory," said Reischl.

The Broncos will play the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLVIII on Feb. 2 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

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