| Address | 11300-12 S. Drive Martin Luther King Jr. Drive,, Chicago, IL |
|---|---|
| Built | 1890 |
| Architect | Solon S. Beman |
| Status | Designated Chicago Landmark |
| Designation Date | July 19, 2023 (Final)City Council Journal of the Proceedings, p. 2182 |
| Neighborhood | Roseland |
| Type | Place of worship |
| Landmark ID | L-383 |
Direct quotes from the Chicago Landmark Designation Report
“Holy Rosary Parish was the first Catholic parish established to serve the Roseland-Pullman Community. Its significance as the center of Catholic life in the community is illustrated by the monumental architecture of the extant church building.”
“The sermon will be preached by Rt. Rev. Bishop Moore, of St. Augustine, Florida, whose Cathedral is the oldest church in America. The congregation of Holy Rosary Church are enthusiastic over this great event, which marks an epoch in religious circles in the beautiful village of Pullman, to the many attractions of which this handsome edifice will add another, and they have invited their brethren from the neighboring parishes to join with them in its celebration.”
“It has remained a constant in the Roseland community, as a place or worship and a center for community, education, and culture. Holy Rosary Parish is significant as one of the first parishes to be established under the Archdiocese of Chicago following its elevation from a diocese in 1880.”
“Beman designed Greater Tabernacle Cathedral (formerly Holy Rosary Church) in 1890 to serve the Catholic congregation of Pullman. Beman then embarked on a nearly two-decade relationship with the Christian Science Church and designed at least a dozen of their churches across the country, including Grand Rapids, Michigan, Lincoln, Nebraska, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Portland, Oregon, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Cincinnati, Ohio.”
“The church building was designed by the renowned and prolific Chicago architect Solon S. Beman and completed in 1890. An imposing and striking place of worship, the church building imparted a sense of monumentality on the native prairie that remained undeveloped and only dotted with farmsteads and frame cottages at the time of construction.”
“It has remained a constant in the Roseland community, as a place of worship and a center for community, education, and culture. Holy Rosary Catholic Church The origins of the Complex's first congregation, Holy Rosary Catholic Church, trace back to 1882, when the Archdiocese of Chicago formed the first English-speaking Catholic parish to minister to the residents of Pullman.”
“The closing mass at Holy Rosary was held on June 28, 2008, ending the 126-year history of this parish. Holy Rosary Church and the Developing Communities Project In addition to housing the parish's house of worship, parochial school, and convent, Holy Rosary Church served as the first headquarters for the Developing Communities Project.”
“In 1916, the Calumet Index reported that “on March 28, the Holy Rosary church, school houses and grounds were freed from debt and the event was celebrated in Market Hall." In 1926 the interior of the church was redecorated by noteworthy liturgical artist John Anton Mallin, a Czech immigrant based in Chicago.”
“CCHD was founded with the mission "to address the root causes of poverty in America through promotion and support of community-controlled self -help organizations and through transformative social justice, education, and solidarity between poor and non-poor." In Chicago during the early 1980s, the CCHD was working to expand beyond Catholic parishes to Black Protestant churches, where much more of the community impacted by the closing of the city's industrial plants worshipped.”