St. Joseph Catholic Church (Wilmette, Illinois)

Last updated

St. Joseph Catholic Church is a parish of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Chicago. The church is located in Wilmette, Illinois, United States, at the corner of Lake Ave and Ridge Road. It is listed on the Wilmette Register of Historic Properties and on the National Register of Historic Places.[ citation needed ]. Although St. Joseph's Mission (the "Log Cabin Mission") was founded in 1842, it wasn't recognized as a parish until 1845 by Chicago's first Catholic bishop, William Quarter to serve German Catholic immigrants from Trier, Germany. The first assigned priest and pastor was Father G.H. Plathe in 1845, who was followed by Fr. Johann Fortmann in 1847. In May of 1852, Fr. Fortmann was appointed to begin St. Henry's Catholic Church, which was placed at the halfway point between St. Joseph's Wilmette, and downtown Chicago where the diocese was based. The removal of the beloved Fr. Fortmann caused a lot of turmoil in the isolated parish. Before the end of 1852, the diocese reverted St. Joseph's "Parish" back to a "Mission" for several months, due to the inability of getting a priest to go there. [1]

Contents

After running through a series of short-term pastors, Father William Netstraeter, would serve the parish for five decades beginning in 1872, as well as become a Wilmette trustee and help found New Trier High School. [2] In 1873, the church opened a school, taught by nuns from Milwaukee's School Sisters of St. Francis from 1877 until 1981; the Archdiocese of Chicago closed the school in 1986, but parish families reopened it a decade later. [3]


The 1939 Church

In the wake of Fr. Netstraeter's death in 1924, his will indicated that the money in his estate go towards the construction of a brand new church - under the condition that the parishioners contribute any lacking monetary sum to complete the job should the bequeathed money fall short. The parishioners were unaware of this generous gift from their former pastor, and were not prepared to embark on this task in 1924. The old St. Joseph's Church was located on the north side of Lake Avenue, which is the current parking lot of St. Joseph's School, adjacent to the cemetery. Since the parish was not ready to commence the project, the money was borrowed by Cardinal George Mundelein and put towards the construction of University of St. Mary of the Lake.

Thirteen years later, in the aftermath of the Paper hanger (Mundelein's speech) controversy, without any warning, St. Joseph's Parish was sued by an estranged distant family in Germany claiming to be relatives of Fr. Netstraeter, in attempt to collect the bequeathed money mentioned in his will. This was clearly seen as a hoax and legal maneuver on the part of the Nazi Party in retaliation against Cardinal Mundelein for publicly attacking Adolf Hitler. A Chicago court validated that Fr. Netstraeter's will was valid and the money was quickly returned to St. Joseph's, and construction the church began immediately. The new church was completed in 1939, and its dedication in October was Cardinal Mundelein's last public appearance before his death.

St. Francis Xavier Church began in 1904 and would merge with St. Joseph Parish in 2019 with much controversy. [4] Saint Francis Xavier Church is located in Wilmette, at the corner of Linden Ave and 9th Street.

List of St. Joseph's Wilmette Pastors

Father Gerhard M. Plathe (1845 to 1847)
Father Johann "Henry" N. Fortmann (1847 to 1852)
Father J.B.U. Jacoment (1852)
Father Lawrence Kuepfer (1852 to 1853)
Father Nicholas Stauder (1853 to 1855)
Father Anthony Kopp (1855 to 1860)
Father Peter Kartlaub (1860)
Father Tschider (1861)
Father Franz Blaesinger (1861 to 1864)
Father Bernard Heskemann (1864 to 1872)
Father William Netstraeter (1872 to 1923)
Monsignor John Neumann (1923-1964)
Monsignor Charles Meter (1964-1981)
Father Donald Cusack (1982-1993)
Bishop Francis J. Kane (1993-2003)
Monsignor John Pollard (2003-2010)
Father Robert Tonelli (2010-2017)
Monsignor Daniel Mayall (2017-2019)
Father Wayne F. Watts (2019-present) [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wilmette, Illinois</span> Village in Illinois, United States

Wilmette is a village in New Trier Township, Cook County, Illinois, United States. Bordering Lake Michigan, it is located 14 miles (23 km) north of Chicago's downtown district and had a population at the 2010 census of 27,087. In 2020, Wilmette was ranked by Niche.com as the best place to raise a family in Cook County based on a variety of factors including public schools grade, percentage of residents with a bachelors degree or higher, crime & safety grade, family amenities, walkability grade, percentage of households with children, and access to parks and other recreational activities. Wilmette is also home to Central Elementary School and Romona Elementary School, both recent recipients of the National Blue Ribbon award bestowed by the U.S. Department of Education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albert Gregory Meyer</span>

Albert Gregory Meyer was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago in Illinois from 1958 until his death in 1965, and was appointed a cardinal in 1959. He previously served as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee in Wisconsin from 1953 to 1958 and as bishop of the Diocese of Superior in Wisconsin from 1946 to 1953.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago</span> Latin Catholic archdiocese in the United States

The Archdiocese of Chicago is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in Northeastern Illinois, in the United States. It was established as a diocese in 1843 and elevated to an archdiocese in 1880. It serves the more than 2.2 million Catholics in Cook and Lake counties in the state of Illinois, an area of 1,411 square miles (3,650 km2). The archdiocese is divided into six vicariates and 31 deaneries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrick Feehan</span> Irish-born American Catholic archbishop (1829-1902)

Patrick Augustine Feehan, was an Irish-born American Catholic bishop. He served as the fifth Bishop and first Archbishop of Chicago between 1880 and 1902, during which the church in Chicago was elevated to an archdiocese.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Saint Mary of the Lake</span>

The University of Saint Mary of the Lake (USML) is a private Roman Catholic seminary in Mundelein, Illinois. It is the principal seminary and school of theology for the formation of priests in the Archdiocese of Chicago in Illinois. Chartered by the Illinois General Assembly in 1844, it has the longest continuous academic charter in the state of Illinois. USML is often referred to by the name of its graduate program, Mundelein Seminary. Its compound name is University of Saint Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary</span> Private high school seminary school in Chicago, Illinois, United States

Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary was an American seminary preparatory school administered by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago for young men considering the priesthood. Located in downtown Chicago at 103 East Chestnut Street, adjacent to Loyola University Chicago's Water Tower campus, it closed on 22 June 2007, and became the Archbishop Quigley Center, the pastoral center and headquarters of the archdiocese after renovations ending 19 November 2008. Between 1961 and 1990, the seminary was split into two campuses: Quigley South and Quigley North, with Quigley North housed at the original building. The south campus was closed in 1990, with all seminary operations returning to the original building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph N. Perry</span>

Joseph Nathaniel Perry is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Chicago since 1998

The paper hanger speech refers to an address by Cardinal George Mundelein to 500 priests of his Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, at the Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary, in Chicago, Illinois, on May 18, 1937. In the speech he made observations on the transformation of German public opinion.

'Perhaps you will ask how it is that a nation of 60 million intelligent people will submit in fear and servitude to an alien, an Austrian paper hanger, and a poor one at that, and a few associates like Goebbels and Göring, who dictate every move of the people's lives?' The Cardinal went on to suggest that the brains of 60 million Germans had been removed without their even noticing it.

Stanislaus Vincent Bona was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the bishop of the Diocese of Grand Island in Nebraska (1932–1944) and bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin (1945–1967).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francis J. Kane</span>

Francis Joseph Kane is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Kane served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago from 2003 to 2018.

Raymond Peter Hillinger was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Rockford in Illinois (1954–1956) and as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago (1956–1971).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cathedral of St. Raymond Nonnatus (Joliet, Illinois)</span> Church in Illinois, United States

Cathedral of St. Raymond Nonnatus is a Catholic cathedral in Joliet, Illinois, United States. It is the seat and a parish of the Diocese of Joliet in Illinois.

Martin Dewey McNamara was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first bishop of the new Diocese of Joliet in Illinois from 1949 to 1966.

Francis Joseph Magner was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Marquette in Michigan from 1941 to 1947.

The Church of St. Joachim and St. John the Evangelist is a Roman Catholic parish church under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located in Beacon, Dutchess County, New York. It was established after a parish mergers of the Church of St. Joachim, and St. John the Evangelist. The merged parishes share a pastor, clergy and administrative staff, and the two church buildings continued to be used for worship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alberto Rojas</span> Mexican prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1965)

Alberto Rojas is a Mexican prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of San Bernardino in Southern California since 2020. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago in Illinois from 2011 to 2019.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish, often abbreviated OLPH, is a Roman Catholic parish of the Archdiocese of Chicago located in suburban Glenview, Illinois, approximately 16 miles (26 km) north-northwest of downtown Chicago. Originally established in 1907 as the Mission of St. Joseph, Our Lady of Perpetual Help is now one of two Catholic parishes in Glenview along with St. Catherine Laboure. The parish numbers about 3,000 families. As a result, OLPH celebrates no fewer than seven Masses every weekend. Rev. Jeremiah "Jerry" Boland is the current pastor, and Rev. Thomas E. Hickey is pastor emeritus. In addition, OLPH has three associate pastors and two deacon couples.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Andrew Bartosic</span> American priest of the Catholic Church

Mark Andrew Bartosic is an American prelate of the Catholic Church who has been an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Chicago in Illinois since 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael G. McGovern</span> American cleric

Michael George McGovern is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He has served as bishop of the Diocese of Belleville in Illinois since 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louis Tylka</span> American Catholic prelate (born 1970)

Louis Tylka is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who became bishop of the Diocese of Peoria in Illinois in 2022 after 18 months as coadjutor bishop there.

References

  1. ↑ Jolls, Daniel & Michael. Jolls, Daniel; Jolls, Michael (October 2019). Rev. William Netstraeter: A Life in Three Parts. ISBN   9781696784153., 2019.
  2. ↑ "New Trier High School's founders honored with bronze plaque" Winnetka Talk (April 30, 2019)
  3. ↑ "Outdoor mass marks blending of 2 parishes in Wilmette" Glenview Lantern (July 4, 2019) p. 11
  4. ↑ "Wilmette churches celebrate coming together as new parish".
  5. ↑ Fr. F.L. Kalvelage, "The Survey of Saint Joseph Parish." September 1930.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.