Chicago’s Irish Heritage Center
As bidding around the table became tense, one Irishman whispered to another, “Raise it two thousand.”
And that is how for half a million plus two thousand the old Mayfair School at 4626 North Knox Avenue in Chicago’s Northwest became the Irish American Heritage Center. It covers an entire city block (3.7 acres) and is located at the exits of two expressways, the Edens and the Kennedy.
That was seven years ago. It is worth much more now; because Irishmen, proud of their heritage gave of their skills, their money, and their time. The craftsmen, the plumbers, the painters, the plasterers, the carpenters, the iron workers and the masons all volunteered. Kevin Sherman is the architect, Ambroise Kelly the general contractor, and Ed Cox decorated the lobby from The Book of Kells.
The lawyers, the doctors, the businessmen have just paid the lày installment on their pledge of $100,000.
This block-long structure now has a professional theater with elegant curtains, modern lighting and upholstered chairs.
A museum contains a 20-year collection of Belleek, a rare reproduction of The Book of Kells, and wall charts showing the influence of Irish culture upon Europe in the Dark Ages.
The Belleek was a gift from Father Jim Kill who carefully arranged it here in lighted cabinets. Two months later he died of a massive heart attack, A second Belleek collection was given by a minister in Springhouse, Pennsylvania, who had heard of the museum.
There is embroidery done by the sister of William Butler Yeats, and a collection of small boat models, including one which St. Brendan might have used to sail to America.
“In some of the classrooms we teach music,” said Frank Kilter, a volunteer administrator at the Center. “In some we teach the Irish language. Over there is a group learning Irish crafts such as knitting, crocheting, Irish lace making and quilting.”
On the main floor is a ballroom where two large classrooms were opened up to form one large room.
“We knew we were going to make all these big openings in the walls and so to prevent the second floor from coming down onto the first,” said Frank, “we called in the Irish iron workers. They supported the ceiling with 16 massive beams. Then the carpenters and plasterers did their thing, and now we have a ballroom.
“An Irishman in the city center was abandoning a health club, so he donated the flooring to us. Our men went down in trucks, pulled up the boards and hauled them up here. Our architect, Kevin, picked up the design from the beams in the ceiling so it runs straight under the beams, then it goes into a herringbone pattern to become a parquet floor.”
Half of the ballroom looks like one of the Great Houses of Ireland. There are tall formal drapes at the windows. When completed the base will be paneled and scenes of Ireland will hang on the walls.
The other part of the room represents the rural life of Ireland with rough walls and white cottage curtains. The wooden bar has inserts of polished slate which were the blackboards in the old classrooms. Behind a mirror at the back of the bar is a doorway leading into the walk-in cooler. From kegs of beer kept here, pipes run under the floor carrying the beer to the appropriate spots at the bar. This gives you cold Irish beer on tap.
Restoring and decorating the auditorium became a project for the women members. They decided to change the ordinary wooden chairs into regular theater seats. For $100 you could buy a chair and have it dedicated to whomever you wished – your mother, your father or grandparents. On the arm is the name of this person.
Since the Irish are very rich in drama, music and poetry, the auditorium is in constant use.
Irish plays are performed in the spring and fall by a group called the Irish Heritage Players.
These are plays by O’Casey, Brian Friel and the like. Irish singers, dance groups, historians, genealogists, and visiting Irish celebrities are also brought in.
“Our purpose is to present programs not found anywhere else, and to acquaint people with their Irish heritage,” said Frank.
When it is not in use by the members, the auditorium is available for other groups. The German American children’s choir gives concerts here twice a year. The floor above was once a gymnasium but that was changed to a social center. So now the Germans have catered dinners there after their programs in the auditorium. Other groups use it, too. A Jewish couple recently held their wedding reception here.
A projection booth at the back is for movies and a satellite dish on the roof brings in the Irish games from Dublin. Every Friday night there is a ceili and rooms are rented out to groups such as the Trinity Dancing School.
Work is progressing on the library, which is under the direction of a former Chicago Public Library supervisor. One section will be for children, one for the study of the Irish language, and the rest will deal with everything from Irish American history to literature, drama and genealogy.
“We have had a good start,” said Frank. “Four years ago a teacher in the public schools
for over 50 years willed us her entire library of over 1,000 books on Irish history and literature. This is the nucleus of our library. The rest of us have been adding to that and waiting for the library to open. In the meantime, our homes are filled with books, bags and boxes.”
Another ongoing project is the Irish An Gallery which is expected to open this month. Utilizing the space of this magnificent 86,000 square foot building is the most ambitious plan yet attempted by any ethnic group in the United States.
Some things still to come are a recording studio, TV cable broadcasting studios, word processing and printing center, recreational center and gymnasium, dance and music studios, banquet rooms, a members’ lounge and the about to open art gallery.
The motto of the whole project is “Nil neart go cur le ceile.” There is not strength until we work together.
– Erma Perry
Irish Church Ends Up On the Garbage Heap
The name Vinegar Hill for many of us recalls a historic battle in 1798 when Irish peasants armed with nothing but pikes and pitchforks showed incredible bravery as they charged the British cavalry on Vinegar Hill in County Wexford.
To a small New York community wedged between Brooklyn Heights, the Navy Yard, and the East River this historical reference has somewhat more significance. Originally called Irish Town, this area was renamed Vinegar Hill by John Jackson, a landowner who hoped to lure Irish immigrants into buying the many lots he owned there. Irish immigrants were flocking to the United States after the restrictions for Catholic immigration were lifted in the 1800’s.
Many prominent Brooklynites had their homes in Vinegar Hill including architect Patrick Charles Keely. Born in Kilkenny, Ireland, the son of a builder, Keely came to the United States in 1842. He designed almost 700 buildings over the next 43 years, and his churches are to be found throughout the eastern seaboard of North America. They include such structures as the
Boston Cathedral, and have led many to consider him the patriarch of Roman Catholic Church architecture in the United States. One of his early works, St. Anne’s, on the corner of Gold and Front Streets in Vinegar Hill, with its simple Gothic style and the 130 foot high tower, dominated Keely’s old neighborhood panorama for over 32 years. That legacy came to an abrupt end when it was demolished on Friday, September 25 of this year.
St. Anne’s wasn’t lost without a struggle, however. Four years ago on hearing of the possible sale of the church, the Vinegar Hill Neighborhood Association wrote to Bishop Magavero of Brooklyn looking for assurances that this integral part of the community, and important facet in the history and character of Vinegar Hill would not be destroyed. Monsignor John Walker informed the association that he was negotiating with a local garbage and recycling concern who wanted to purchase the property. And in a letter dated October, 1988, he assured the association that the spiritual needs of the community would be taken care of – in a neighboring church!
With the death of Monsignor Walker, communications between the neighborhood association and the diocese deteriorated. And members of the community are upset that neither the church nor the buyer made any effort to inform them on plans for the site. Even the New York Landmarks Preservation Commission is mystified as to why the Catholic Church didn’t honor its commitment to work with the community and find a new use for this pre-Civil War building. The Vinegar Hill Neighborhood Association contends that the diocese was never interested in landmark preservation of St. Anne’s, as it would have restricted its market value.
The demolition happened at the end of summer when residents were away and less likely to protest, says Monique Denonan, president of the Vinegar Hill neighborhood association, who used strong words to sum up, most succinctly, how she felt: “The community has a sense of being betrayed by the Roman Catholic Church.”
– John F. Bourke
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in the November 1992 issue of Irish America. ♦
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