Emmanuel Episcopal Church - La Grange
203 South Kensington Avenue
LaGrange, Illinois
(708) 352-1275
Reverend Dr. David E. Werner, III

The year was 1872.  The Episcopalians held the first regular services in La Grange. Worship took place on Spring and Elm at the home of David Lyman, whose father had been a missionary in Hawaii. The members formally organized a parish on December 15, 1874. That same year, Lyman and his father-in-law, Franklin Cossitt, donated land for a church on the south side of Elm, between Kensington and Catherine Avenues. Consecrated on October 5, 1878, the building stood at the center of La Grange when completed the following year. The structure was small -- made of local stone.  Lyman served as senior warden of the Emmanuel Episcopal Church for many years.

By 1885 membership totaled 91.

In 1886 a rectory was completed.

In 1893 a two-story parish house opened. The latter contained a gymnasium upstairs and two bowling alleys in the basement.

In 1894 a second church building was added.

On December 1, 1924, a fire of unknown origin destroyed everything but the rectory and church bell. Parishioners attended services in the homes of members and in the auditorium of the Cossitt School during the winter and the following spring.

By autumn of 1925, a portable building had been erected on church property which housed worshippers until a new stone structure could be completed.

John Tilton, an architect and son of the designer of the lost church, volunteered to plan a new building after hearing about the fire. At the dedication on May 11, 1926, the new building was a magnificent edifice with:

• soaring arches
• a large marble altar
• ornately-carved stone pulpit
• stained glass windows of great beauty

The 1930s and 1940s saw establishment of the Church Club (later the Men of Emmanuel) and the Gamma Kappa Delta youth organization.

In 1949 a two-story building was completed to house offices, classrooms, a choir room and parlor.

Some parishioners left in 1959 to found a daughter church, Saint Helena's at 7600 Wolf Road.

The next construction project involved a new education building completed in 1962. The two organizations for women, Saint Mary's Guild and the Women's Auxiliary, joined each other, and in 1960 took the name Emmanuel Episcopal Churchwomen.

In July, 1970, the congregation organized The Fish, a 24-hour a day ministry to help those in need of such services as emergency medical care, transportation, food, or a willing listener in times of stress. The First Presbyterian Church of La Grange shared in the effort.

Following the purchase of a new rectory in 1969, church officials replaced the old building with a memorial garden.

In 1972, WGN-Channel 9 TV broadcasted the 11 a.m. service at Emmanuel twice. The pictures showed a new Cassavant organ, the result of a three-year fund drive.  In the church's centennial year (1974) there were many event including:

• the 18^th annual Antique Show and Sale
• construction of a new baptistry
• a winning float in the Pet Parade.

At the Centennial of La Grange, the beautiful church dedicated in 1926 continues to stand as a landmark house of worship.

Several sources were used in the compilation of these entries including but not limited to:

• Images of America -- La Grange and La Grange Park, Illinois by RoseAnna and Robert Mueller, Arcadia Publishing
• La Grange Centennial History 1879-1979, William J Cromie, Editor, La Grange Area Historical Society, 1979

Last Modified:  04/08/2003