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St. Boniface Church ...
Address: 1358 W. Chestnut Street
Completed: 1904
Architect: Henry J. Schlacks ..
St. Boniface is colored-coded orange in the Commission on Chicago Landmarks Historic Resources Survey: “…a structure possessing historical and architectural distinction in the context of the immediate community.”
The church has not been in use since 1989 ...
Now it's in a subject of a contentious struggle between the Chicago archdiocese and preservationists ... Roman Catholic archdiocese wants to tear down the church, whereas the Preservation Chicago, seeks to rescue this Romanesque building from the wreck. A group of Coptic Orthodox Christians said they wanted to purchase the remaining St. Boniface buildings but the archdiocese never took their offers. In Dec. 2008, the archdiocese asked the city for a permit to raze the building, saying the cost of transforming the structure would be prohibitive ... However, The demolition will not happen right away, because the parish is rated "Code Orange" which means, the archdiocese cannot proceed with demolition for 90 days while the city weighs its request. That delay gives preservationists and religious organizations time to step in and save the building now priced at more than $2 million.
Read more: St. Boniface Church ..at center of battle over Chicago archdiocese razings ..
St. Boniface Church was established for German immigrants in 1865. With roots in Chicago history that predate the great Chicago Fire of 1871, St. Boniface played an integral role in helping to reshape and rebuild its neighborhood and city by providing makeshift housing within the church buildings as well as clothing and meals for people whose homes had been destroyed in the conflagration ...
Built in Romanesque style, the church is defined by its three soaring bell towers. [The bells have been removed, since the church is no longer in use]... Their steeply pitched clay tile roofs makes it instantly recognizable for miles around. The base is made of rusticated ashlar block intersected by canted buttresses that extend down to the sidewalk. Detailing includes arcades, as well as intact rose window frames although their stained glass has long since been removed.
The history of the St. Boniface parish is significant as it provides insight into the social and political dynamics of the different immigrant communities who settled around Chicago Avenue and Noble Street from the 1860s to the present. St. Boniface fits within the historical and physical context of other formidable sights; The Northwestern Settlement House; Holy Trinity Church; St. Stanislaus Kostka Church; and St. John Cantius Church ...
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St. Boniface Church ..
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