The history of Kensington, where St. Salomea’s church is located, begins in the middle of the 19th century, when the construction of the railroad started in the area. Before it became a district of Chicago, it had been a workers’ settlement on the outskirts of the city. It is an interesting place because at the beginning of its existence a lot of attention was paid to creating decent living conditions for the inhabitants, who were the employees of the Pullman factory. The owner of the plant employed architect Solon Beman and landscape architect Nathan Barrett to design the estate.

He provided not only relatively comfortable houses, but also a friendly environment. It was a completely different world compared to other districts of Chicago. The inhabitants were provided with education, entertainment and access to the library and theatre. Some, however, criticized the project as being fundamentally non-American. Residents did not have a say in creating their living conditions, and their way of life was imposed on them. However, the good life did not last long, and after a few years Pullman’s plant started to decline. Employees had their salaries reduced, but the rents stayed the same. This led to a major strike, which was widely discussed in the USA.

Poles never dominated this area. However, they appeared in the area as early as in 1881, i.e. several months after the opening of the first Pullman factory, which initiated development of the town. Later the course of events was quite typical. The growing community wanted its own parish, just like the German, Irish and French immigrants. Their efforts were rewarded 1898, when the parish was officially established, though the first parish priest was not appointed until two years later, because the parish was not numerous enough and there was a noticeable shortage of Polish priests in the Archdiocese of Chicago. At first the community rented a place to conduct religious life and run a small school, then they erected a wooden church and presbytery, and later a school and a convent were built.

When the church building turned out to be insufficient for the needs of the parish, efforts to build the new one began. It took several years from the laying of the cornerstone to the completion of the construction in 1913. The cost of construction was 90,000 dollars, and up to 1,000 believers could be accommodated inside. The church was made of brick and had pointed arch windows and vaults, which gave the structure a Gothic Revival look, with the popular arcaded frieze motif added. The façade has two added towers that clearly dominate the surroundings. Inside there are stained-glass windows, made by the local Hans Muench studio in the style of Bavarian workshops.

The parish developed in the subsequent decades, though slightly more slowly during the recession in the 1930s. The 1950s and 1960s were the time of the greatest prosperity and new buildings were added. However, the changes leading to closing down factories resulted in the reduction of the population in the area. Mexicans and Afro-Americans gradually replaced the Poles, old parishes were consolidated and most of them seemed doomed. St. Salomea’s church still functioned for some time thanks to the loyalty of the parishioners, who may have already moved elsewhere but would still come to Sunday Mass at the old church, as is quite often the case in the USA. However, such a state could not last very long and in 1990 the parish was liquidated. The church building was sold to the Salem Baptist Church and is now used primarily for wedding ceremonies.

The dedication of the church referred to Blessed Salomea. However, she has also been called a saint, both in Polish and in English; this designation even appears in the inscription on the cornerstone of the church. Nevertheless, we have decided to use the proper form, “Blessed Salomea”, throughout this publication.

Chronology

1889 - establishment of the St. Stanislaus Kostka Society and starting the efforts to establish a parish

1898 - erection of the parish of St. Salomea

1900 - construction of a wooden church

1902 - construction of a school

1912 - beginning of the construction of the new church

1913 - completing the church and extending the school

1960 - construction of a new convent for nuns

1973 - renovation of the church

1984 - closing the school

1990 - liquidation of the parish and sale of the building to the Salem Baptist Church

Text originally published in a book issued by the POLONIKA Institute.
Katarzyna Chrudzimska-Uhera, Anna Sylwia Czyż, Jacek Gołębiowski, Bartłomiej Gutowski, Polish parishes and churches in Chicago, Warszawa 2019, pp. 239-242.