Oldest Catholic Church in Cook County: On Archer Ave, down the road from The Willowbrook dance hall and Resurrection Cematary The church was founded in 1833 by workers building the Illinois and Michigan Canal, and first met in a rough log cabin. The present church building was built from 1853 to 1858 of locally quarried limestone painstakingly dragged up the steep hill. It was built on an ancient Native American trail, which has evolved into todays Archer Avenue (Illinois Route 171). On March 27, 1991, a tornado caused significant damage to Lemont and Sag Bridge, including the historic St. James church and cemetery. The tornado lifted up the roof of the church and dropped it back down askew, and knocked over numerous trees and tombstones in the cemetery. A group of dedicated parishioners banded together as the St. James Preservation Society to repair the damage and restore their church. The cematary is alleged to be haunted as by several witnesses. A disgruntled Monk is alleged to have been seen who returns to the Church after wandering the premises
Posted on: Sat, 20 Sep 2014 23:42:08 +0000
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