March - Lemont Area Historical Society

Lemont Area Historical Society
306 Lemont Street
Lemont, IL 60439
(630) 257-2972
www.lemonthistorical.org
lemonthistorical@gmail.com
Photo by Richard Lee
March-April, 2016
COMING EVENTS
March 5 - 1:00 pm
March with us in the
St Patrick's Day Parade
March 10 - 6:30 pm
Public Hearing - Village Hall
St. James Academy
March 27 - Happy Easter!
Museum Closed
Submarines in Lemont!
by Richard Lee
Pat Camalliere* also contributed to this article
LAHS Vice President Richard Lee has arranged a program to give us an in depth look at
World War 2 submarines made in Manitowoc, Wisconsin and shipped down the Sanitary &
Ship Canal from Lake Michigan to the Illinois River. In 1940, the Manitowoc Shipbuilding
Company wwas commissioned to construct submarines. The company, who had never built
a submarine before, completed the first sub 228 days ahead of schedule. A total of 28 submarines were constructed at a cost of $5 million less than the contract price.
Periscopes and radar masks were removed in order to clear bridges on the trip down the canal.
Once
the subs arrived in Lockport, they were loaded onto a floating dry dock for the remainder
of the trip down the Illinois River and then into the Mississippi River to New Orleans. A few
Lemont people were lucky to see one or more, which was quite an unusual experience. Jack
Ahrens, a Lemont resident and LAHS member will recall for us what he saw.
A group of submariners that meets in Chicago will be coming to our meeting at the Lemont
VFW on April 5 (Tuesday) at 7 pm. In the event of snow or ice the meeting will be held two
weeks later on April 19 at the same time and place. They will be explaining some of their
experiences and most of the veterans are Navy men who served on nuclear submarines. They
will be bringing materials and photos to show and collecting for a memorial in Chicago.
Top speed on the Manitowoc-built Gato and Baleo class submarines was about 20 knots
surface speed. In an attempt to develop superior and faster ships, the Navy approached
Argonne Lab to develop a nuclear powered sub.
(Continued on Page 3)
Don't forget to Renew
Your Membership!
March 29- 7:00 p.m.
General Membership Meeting
Nominating Committee
Selected
Vote on By-Law Amendment
April 5 - 7:00 pm
Program at Lemont VFW
Submarines in Lemont!
April 6 - 6:30 pm
Board Meeting
April 19
Program Alternate Date (if needed)
Museum Hours
10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. - Saturday
1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. - Sunday
Library Hours
Wednesday 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
By Appointment
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President's Message. . .
Dear LAHS Members
Well, February is over and Easter is around the corner,
so warmer weather is sure to follow. Looking forward to some
flowers!
Our trip down the yellow brick road for the showing of the 1925 silent version and the 1939 musical of The Wizard of Oz was a success. Even though it was
a test run and a cold January night, we had 25 people. We look forward to having
more silent movie nights in the future!
Our 2nd annual FUNraising Pub Crawl, “Drinkin’ with Lincoln” was another success. The President led the crowd through the Village stopping at Stonehouse
Pub, Tom’s Place, Canal Street Pub, The Vault, Nick’s Tavern and finally having
birthday cake to celebrate Honest Abe’s 207th birthday at The Main Inn. It was a
fun evening and it was great to see many new faces as well as our familiar regulars.
Please join us as LAHS and the Lemont Quarrymen again walk in Lemont’s
St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Line-up will be at 12:30 p.m. at Safety Village. Hopefully,
the weather will cooperate!
Information is on the front page regarding the upcoming program on
Submarines in Lemont on April 5th at the VFW. It should be very informative as
a previously unexplored part of Lemont history. Thanks to Richard Lee and Pat
Camalliere for arranging this program.
On June 11th, the Lemont Quarrymen will be hosting an 8 team vintage
base ball tournament at Mt. Assisi Field. President Lincoln will not only be throwing out the first pitch, but I understand he will be playing an inning or two! Along
with many other features, there will also be a blue grass band performing.
Update on St. James Academy
As we all know, Archdiocese of Chicago submitted an application for a
Certificate of Economic Hardship for the demolition of St. James Academy (Old St.
Patrick School) and convent building. Although Rose Yates was successful in her
attempt to get the historic structure on the list of 10 Most Endangered Structures in
Illinois, the Archdiocese is still asking to demolish the structure due to economic
hardship. Since the Village did not agree that all possible alternatives to demolition had been utilized, the deadline had been extended with a requirement to list
the building with a broker for sale. A public hearing was held and specific information on listing the building was requested. The continued hearing was scheduled in
February but Church officials asked for another continuance to evaluate a couple
of proposals by developers wishing to acquire the building from the Archdiocese.
Let’s keep our fingers crossed and say some prayers that a deal can be reached to
satisfy the Archdiocese.
We would like to thank the Village, especially Charity Jones, Heather
Valone, the Historic Preservation Commission and all those who attended the public
hearing and spoke for all of their efforts to save this historic gem. If at all possible,
please attend the public hearing at the Village on March 10, at 6:30 p.m. It is
important that we have community support in this endeavor.
All the very best to you and your families for a Happy Spring and Blessed Easter!
Sincerely,
Sue
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WWII Submarine in floating
dry dock at Lockport, Chicago
Sanitary & Ship Canal circa 1943
Photo courtesy of Gary Ward and the
Lockport Historical Society
World War II submarines were basically
surface ships that could travel underwater
for a limited time. Diesel engines gave
them high surface speed and long range,
but speed and range were severely reduced
underwater, where they relied on electric
motors powered by relatively short-lived
storage batteries. Recharging the storage
batteries meant surfacing to run the airbreathing diesels.
Submarines enter the Nuclear Age . . .(continued from page 1)
Richard Lee and Pat Camalliere
A few men from Argonne National Laboratory who helped design and build compact reactors to power the submarines may
attend on April 5, but are getting quite old and may need assistance for the trip. Argonne cooperated with the Navy and Admiral Rickover to design and build the first reactors because of their expertise in reactors. Rickover and his staff regularly visited
Argonne to check on progress and I worked for a man, the “chief” who was engine room chief officer on the carrier Enterprise
who supervised the corrosion testing of cladding materials.
(Richard Lee is currently serving as Society Vice President. Pat Camalliere is a Board member and the Author of Mystery at Sag Bridge, a
novel set in Lemont)
Little Mountain History Project
by Richard Lee
The local theatre group is having a performance at the Lemont
High School Performing Arts Center July 16 and 17 and wants to have
some old photos to display in the lobby about “Lemont Traditions.”
We are evaluating selections from our historical archives to frame and
display for them with the cooperation of the high school art teacher. We
will be making copies of our archival photos and enlarging them for better viewing and reframing. We are lucky to have a wonderful old poster
from the 1930s of a young Ordman woman who was in a local play for
display.
Another photo that shows the high school majorettes from 1940
will make another good selection for traditions and it would be great if
we could find a photo of the high school band from the 1950s or 1960s.
We would appreciate any help in finding more photos of our traditions.
Lemont Area Historical Society
Board of Directors
Susan Roy, President
Richard Lee, 1st Vice President
Susan Donahue, 2nd Vice President
Wiliam Uznanski, Treasurer
Rose Yates, Secretary
Board Members
Barbara Bannon,
Patricia Camalliere, Carol Garibay
Rick Homerdingl, Doris Peterman,
John Quinn, Gary Roy
Society members
are encouraged
to participate on the
Committee or Subcommittee
of their choice
SOCIETY NEWS
By Susan Donahue
MEMBERSHIPS
Just a friendly reminder that March is Membership Renewal Month. The form that can be used is on this page. We
welcome the renewal of Charlene Smollen and Joyce Tomes to
the LAHS.
We also take the time to acknowledge the renewal
of the Athens Marble Club Membership by LEMONT
TOWNHSIP. We appreciate the commitment shown by our
members.
If you know of someone who you feel would like to join us
as we preserve our rich Lemont history please let us know, or
give them a Membership Form. Thank you.
VOLUNTEER LUNCHEON SIDENOTES:
I am sure our Society President has already touched on this
enjoyable event that was held on February 21st, at Gelsossomos but there was something I wanted to share with you too.
I think sometimes we take things for granted about our
town or our society, as though everyone must know about this.
At the luncheon I attended with our great group of volunteers
I was approached by several people who were interested in the
photos that decorate the walls at this pizza parlour on Main
Street. They were residents who have moved into town within
the last 20 years and so these old time pixs were a treat for
them.
They were filled with questions and trying to figure out
where exactly the photo was taken. It was fun filling in these
planks.
I am proud to say that the owner’s daughter, Jennifer,
contacted us and in a series of meetings where she poured
over historic photographs she came up with some very good
choices. When you go there please check them out. I think
personally they are very impressive and capture a time period
in our history where Lemont had more of a thriving downtown. Sadly some of the buildings shown no longer exist. They
were either torn down or claimed by fire. We now have, as you
know, a Historic District Preservation Commission to help
create avenues where owners can find another alternative to a
tear down.
I bring this up too because often people are unaware of our
archival photographic collection. Reprints can be made by us
and it could be a present to yourself or a house warming gift
for someone else.
Proposed By-Law Amendments
by Gail August
Amendment to Article IV - Membership, Sect. 5 Meetings,
Part B-Regular Meetings
New Wording:
"The LAHS shall meet in the months of March, September and
November. Proper notice will be given of the date."
Current Wording:
"The LAHS shall meet bi-monthly in January, March, May,
July, Septembr, November. Proper notice will be given of any
change in date.
Amendment to Article X - Dissolution:
New Wording:
"In the event of dissolution of the LAHS, [the President and
Board of Directors shall supervise the disposition of] its assets
for one or more of the exempt purposes specified in Section
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. [The President and
Board of Directors shall supervise the disposition of assets in the
event of dissolution.] Upon dissolution of the LAHS, all collections (including the library) should be offered to loal area nonfor-profit entities first, such as but not limited to, Lemont Public
Library, Southwest Suburban Genealogy Society, local historical
societies. Any remaining items shall become property of the Illinois State Historical Society."
[Text in brackets added by the Board to the proposed amendment]
Current Wording:
"In the event of dissolution of the LAHS, its assets shall be
distributed for one or more of the eempt purposes specified in
Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Upon dissolution of the LAHS, all collections shall become property of the
Illinois Historical Society."
Amendments will be voted on at March General Meeting. Upon approval, these amendments would become effective immediately.
Membership Renewal Application
Make checks payable to the Lemont Area Historical Society
306 Lemont Street, Lemont, IL 60439
______
Individual $20.00/year
_______
Individual Life $200.00
_______
Senior Citizen $15.00/year
_______
Student $10.00/year
_______
Family $30.00/year
Name ______________________________________________
Address ____________________________________________
Phone:
__________________________________________
email:
_____________________________________________
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Genealogy Corner
by Barb Bannon
Hard Work and No Play?
We view the lives of many of our ancestors as a
never ending struggle of trying to make a good life for their
families under adverse conditions. Although this was very
true at times, they still did find time to have fun but without
television and computers what did they do for entertainment? If we familiarize ourselves with the different sources
of entertainment available to our ancestors, we can better
know our relatives.
Theater Halls were located almost everywhere, vaudeville
was one of the most popular types of entertainment in North
America for several decades. Some halls held performances
that were risque but many presented family entertainment
such as plays, ventriloquists, hypnotists, poets, comedians, choirs and orchestras. There were art exhibitions and
carnivals; talks were given by scientists, preachers and
people who ventured to different countries sharing their
experiences. Locally, Teden's Opera House stage in the late
1800's presented quartets and plays for as little as 10 cents,
the stage was also available to the community for amateur
productions and public ceremonies.
People were involved with church groups, sewing and craft
groups, as well as many lodges and societies. There were
fraternal organizations like the Independent Order of Odd
Fellows and Masons in existence to provide a chance for the
men to get together and help them grow spiritually. Some of
the societies had female affiliates such as Rebekahs, Eastern
Star and Ladies Aide Societies and it was not unusual for the
wives to join these organizations.
Board games of all kinds were also very popular, including of course ordinary chess and checkers. Marble and peg
games such as Fox & Geese, and Nine Men's Morris were
favorites in early American homes and taverns. Card games
were played regularly, with poker being most common in
our many saloons. The playing cards of the period were
very elaborate, beautifully illustrated, almost a work of art.
Rollerskating became very popular indoors as early as 1863
but the addition of ball-bearings to roller skates in 1884
increased participation in the sport. Rinks started springing
up all over the country in the early 1900's. In large cities
as well as small town neighborhoods, the rinks became the
social meeting place for friends, relatives, neighbors.
At the turn of the 20th century, families and church groups
packed picnic baskets and headed off to local parks for a day
of fun. Alton Park on Warner Ave. between Logan and Cass
Streets played host to picnickers from as far as Chicago via
the Chicago and Joliet Electric Railway. People boarded the
streetcars to spend the day in the park which had an outdoor
dancing pavilion, concessions, rides, and entertainment.
Many would venture on to Dellwood Park in Lockport to
enjoy boating on the quiet lake, sulky races and at night the
park would be illuminated by hundreds of electric lights.
Bicycling was also a popular form of recreation but was initially invented in 1817 as an alternate form of transportation
since owning and feeding a horse was rather expensive. The
original wooden bicycle form didn’t have pedals, but propulsion was by way of the rider’s feet on the ground. In the
1880's its popularity ballooned but not with carriage drivers
and pedestrians who complained that bicyclists hogged the
roadways and sidewalks.
Outdoor sports of all kinds have always been popular, from
Croquet, to Golf and even Tennis, when in 1850 Charles
Goodyear invented vulcanized rubber allowing Tennis to be
played on grass courts, increasing its popularity.
Summer would bring out the local baseball clubs. An informal game of Baseball can be traced to the 18th century but
the popular sport familiar to us started in the 1850's. By the
1860's the sport was being described as America's “national
pastime." As mentioned in Sonia Kallick's book, Lemont
and Its People, the Lemonters organized their nine as did a
team called the Rivals, along with talk of a new club called
the Marquettes. An editorial in the Observer of April 1897
read, “Line them up boys, baseball is a fine game, an innocent
game, a healthful sport if you keep it so. Let every game the
coming summer be a game that Ladies may attend. If you
have a member in your club who plays more with his mouth
than his hands, drop him. Give us clean ball and lots of it.”
All of this recreation without a single video game, laptop,
tablet or smart phone in sight. Come out and experience some
good old fashioned fun this summer when our own Lemont
Quarrymen play 1858 baseball. Who knew our ancestors
could have so much fun!
STEPPING BACK
IN TIME
By Susan Donahue
FIRST SUBMARINE “The USS Peto (SS-265)”
T0 GO DOWN GREAT LAKES
On a personal note I remember my dad telling me he saw
this rarity and the fact that the Chicago and Sanitary Ship
Canal Bridge here in Lemont swung open to let it pass was
very impressive. I think there also was a matter of pride too
in that all three of his brothers were serving in the Navy and
in that war.
Resource: THE LEMONTER (1941-1943)
Now on to the details: The first U. S. Navy submarine , “The
USS Peto”, was built at Manitowoc, WI. The sub was towed
from Chicago through the inland waterways of Lemont and
was dry – docked at Lockport, IL in December, 1942 for
the trip to New Orleans, the equipment above the conning
tower had to be removed and secured on deck to enable the
sub to pass under the bridge in the Chicago River. The sub
was then mounted on a floating drydock to get it through
the shallow areas in the Mississippi River. In January, 1942,
because of the rise of the waterways in Illinois the “PETO”
was tied up to a willow tree near a cornfield in Morris for a
week.
In January, 1943, the USS Peto, which passed through this
region on the Illinois waterway during the holidays, is now
nearing it’s destination in the Gulf of Mexico for final outfitting for sea service and active duty in defense of Atlantic
coast shipping. It was protected enroute by coast guard
crews and is being towed by tugs especially selected for this
duty. Brief stops were made enroute to provision the towboat which is pushing the drydock.
Geographically, this is the probably the safest place in the
world to build submarines. It is also the strangest, for the
undersea craft must be floated along inland waterways all
the way to the Gulf of Mexico before they can begin to fight.
Four more impatiently ride the Manitowoc River in various
stages of commissioning, and five are on the way. The Navy
will not disclose the number of submarines to be constructed
in Manitowoc, but it has permitted a general account of how
the job is being done. West, who is President of the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co, explains the method in five words,
“We build them in chunks.”
Sixteen chunks or sub-assemblies, plus a conning tower, all
are built on jigs indoors, then hoisted thru the roof and laid on
the ways, where they resemble a thickly sliced loaf of bread.
Welders take over at point, and under their sparkling tools, the
chunks become a submarine. “The Peto” is the first submarine
ever built in this manner for the U.S. Navy. “A submarine,” he
said, is a 300 foot Swiss watch. The toughest job about building them is the internal accuracy required. Thousands of parts,
made of hundreds of alloys, and each one going in at precisely
the right moment. A single installation, completed too soon,
may put a weeks work out of joint.”
Since the first passage of a new inland built submarine down
the waterway restrictions have been placed on such shipping
as to definite departure and names of the vessels, but a close
observer of the waterway notes a steady stream of war ships
daily. Posted warnings bearing the words, “KEEP OUT! $50
FINE” on locks emphasized the national defense character of
the Illinois waterway.
Not one only, but five submarines built upon these inland seas,
have now traversed this inland stream to the outer world, many
submarine chasers, mosquito boats, landing barges and drydocks, built at Lake ports, have used the waterway to get where
needed.
Recently a British submarine builder went to Manitowoc to
inspect the operations. Before he left he announced the Manitowoc technique would be used in his yard. West’s yards have
been building water craft since the days of the sailing vessels.
During the last war it was freighters, but subs are something
new. The new subs are being completed in 30% of the time it
took to put together the, “USS Peto.”
When launched, the submarine represents an investment of
$3,000,000. The Navy sinks in another $3,000,000 in it for
equipment. The sub slips into Lake Michigan for its trials. It is
accomplished by a converted coast guard cutter, which carries a
diving bell and other rescue equipment for use in emergencies.