“It’s a lucky break for the Archdiocese of Chicago that being disingenuous is not a violation requiring a defrocking. Less than two years after they were told by the Archdiocese of Chicago that worship would continue for ‘the immediate future’ at the historic Our Lady of Lourdes church building at 1601 W. Leland Ave., parishioners of the combined St. Mary of the Lake and Our Lady of Lourdes parish were told the Lourdes building has now been declared surplus by the archdiocese and will be closing on May 19.

“Until 2021, Ravenswood’s Our Lady of Lourdes and Buena Park’s St. Mary of the Lake, 4220 N. Sheridan Rd., had functioned as two separate parishes. After the merger, archdiocese officials had assured parishioners of the newly-created St. Mary of the Lake and Our Lady of Lourdes parish both buildings would remain open for services but would share a pastor. On Feb. 3, however, the parish pastor announced his decision to close the 108-year-old shrine.

“Designed by the prominent Chicago architectural firm of Worthmann and Steinbach, the Spanish-Renaissance style church was built in 1916. The firm designed dozens of churches and homes throughout Chicago, many of which are now listed by the city of Chicago on its Architectural Resources Survey.

“When it was originally built, the church faced west and was located across the street. Just 12 years later, the city of Chicago announced plans to widen Ashland Ave. and the church was in danger of losing 10 feet of its facade. The pastor at the time, Rev. James Scanlon, developed an engineering solution which today seems almost impossible.

“‘Instead of letting them chop 10 feet off the front, [Scanlon] decided to move the 10,000 ton church across the street and turn it halfway around so it faced north on Leland. Scanlon then cut the 100-by-175-foot building down the middle and inserted a 20-foot addition, increasing seating capacity from 800 to 1200,” wrote longtime Inside Booster contributor Patrick Butler in his 2013 book Hidden History of Ravenswood and Lakeview.

“Astonishingly, the engineering feat was primarily accomplished by manual labor, not machine

“‘Engineers and architects from around the world came to watch as a handpicked crew of 150 men slowly lifted the building off of its foundation on 2,500 jacks and then edged it across the street on 400 rollers after using air drills to clear away several inches of ice still coating the street that frosty March. To keep from pulling too hard on one part of the building, six heavy chains in front and six heavy chains in rear were hooked to 72 pulleys connected to four horse-powered capstans. On a signal from a whistle, the teams turned their capstans and the church began to move one foot a minute, stopping every four feet to check lines and replace rollers as needed.’ Crowe Brothers, one of the Midwest’s oldest building movers, had to post a $300,000 bond to cover any possible damage. But, [their] calculations were so good that the building didn’t suffer a single crack as it was being hauled across the street and then split in the middle for the 20-foot insert and attached to a new rectory.

“Preservation Chicago, a nonprofit organization dedicated to architectural preservation in the city, continues to list Our Lady of Lourdes on its list of highly-endangered buildings and the group advocates for reuse if a building can no longer serve its original purpose.

“‘We want to encourage the Archdiocese of Chicago to consider inviting other religious orders to Chicago, when the archdiocese can no longer support them,’ said Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago. ‘Additionally, if it is determined that a church or house of worship can no longer function in such a capacity byall stakeholders and the City, plans should be considered to encourage cultural reuses for these most sacred structures. Such reuse efforts may include a reuse as concert venues, music centers, cultural centers for the community and other such respectful uses.’

“Despite being listed on the city’s Architectural Resources Survey as being architecturally significant, a city ordinance exempts religious properties from having landmark status imposed on their property. (Von Buol, Inside Booster, 1/7/24)

Read the full story at Inside Booster

• Our Lady of Lourdes: Church officials may not have been entirely upfront with parishioners over their plans to close Ravenswood’s Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Peter Von Buol, Inside Booster, 1/7/24
• Petition to Landmark Our Lady of Lourdes Church and Rectory