Welcome
Help Us Preserve and Reopen Our Lady of Lourdes Church
PLEDGE Forms will be available starting Thursday, August 1, 2024. Please revisit our website for updates. Thank you!
Who We Are - Our Lady of Lourdes Preservation Society of Chicago
Our Vision
Our Unforgettable Historical Event
Our Approach
Our vision is to preserve Our Lady of Lourdes Church as a historical landmark, reopen and revive it as a Holy Shrine.
Our Approach
Our Unforgettable Historical Event
Our Approach
We have joined forces with Ward Miller, CEO and Founder of Preservation Chicago. He has successfully landmarked hundreds of buildings. We are also working with Alderman Matt Martin of the 47th Ward. We have his full support to preserve OLL Church. And lastly, we hope to procure the property from the Archdiocese of Chicago.
Our Unforgettable Historical Event
Our Unforgettable Historical Event
Our Unforgettable Historical Event
In 1929, Our Lady of Lourdes Church was moved across Ashland Avenue and turned 90° degrees, one of the largest building relocation projects in US history. Due to the need to widen Ashland Avenue (in alignment with Daniel Burnham’s Plan) the church: whose front door previously faced Ashland from the southeast corner of Ashland and Leland,
In 1929, Our Lady of Lourdes Church was moved across Ashland Avenue and turned 90° degrees, one of the largest building relocation projects in US history. Due to the need to widen Ashland Avenue (in alignment with Daniel Burnham’s Plan) the church: whose front door previously faced Ashland from the southeast corner of Ashland and Leland, was moved across Ashland, so that its front door now faces Leland.
The 10,000-ton churched was rolled on 400 tons of rails and 3000 rollers and inched across the street from the East Side of Ashland Ave to the West Side. It was also lengthened 30 feet, increasing the seating from 800 to 1,370. This engineering feat is still considered an architectural wonder!
Help Save Our Lady of Lourdes Church
Join us in our mission to preserve OLL Church as a historical landmark and purchase it from the Archdiocese of Chicago. We will revive it as a Holy Shrine and run by a new order.