History

In the beginning, the Potawatomie people lived in this area. What is now Ridge Avenue and Green Bay Road were in fact Native American trails.   The famed French Jesuit missionary, Jacques Marquette (1637-1675) visited the Potawatomie at Grosse Pointe at least once in his travels.  He showed great respect for the first inhabitants and was well-loved.  With the coming of more and more European and European American immigrants, the Potawatomie were forced to live on a reservation, named Ouilmette (Wilmette).

1836  The first European American settlers made permanent homes here.  What we know as south Evanston was first named "Ridgeville" and later "Oakton."  In 1857 the town was renamed "Evanston" in honor of Dr. John Evans.

1864        St. Mary was founded as the parish for all of south Evanston.  The first Mass was celebrated on the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, August 15, 1865 outdoors, near to where Calvary Cemetery is today.  German-speaking immigrants from Trier, Germany and from Luxembourg began to migrate north from their parish at Ridge and Devon, St. Henry Church (now Angel Guardian Croatian Catholic Church; but if you look closely, you’ll see the statue of St. Henry still on the façade. This is not the same St. Henry Church as our current sharing parish on North Hoyne Street.)

When Father Donohue was appointed pastor of St. Mary, he decided that all activities in the parish (except Mass, which was in Latin) would henceforth be conducted in English.  In the 19^th century, this was the practice of the more progressive clergy, who feared that unless Catholic immigrants learned English and better fit in, they would continue to be persecuted and disadvantaged. 

The German-speaking parishioners began to drift back to St. Henry, but this proved impractical for many.

1887   Nicholas Didier, Nicholas Morper and Adam Kasper began circulating a petition from house to house asking the archbishop of Chicago to establish a German-speaking parish in south Evanston.  A meeting of future parishioners was held in May, and on July 20,  Archbishop Feehan established St. Nicholas and named Father Otto Groenenbaum (died 1897) as first pastor.

The parishioners bought the current property at Ridge Avenue and Washington.  On August 7, the first Mass was celebrated in a hall on Chicago Avenue.  John Nicholas Petrie was the first to be baptized.  In September, construction began on the first church building. In November, the first Mass was celebrated in the new and first church building.

1897    The school caught on fire and the fire spread to the church building, which burned down in two hours. 

1898    A new school—our present "old" school and social hall building—was built and Masses were held in the chapel.  Father Leo Biermann was the pastor.
 

1904         Ground was broken for a new church building on September 5.  On St. Nicholas Day, December 6, the cornerstone was laid.
 

1906  The first Mass in the current church building was celebrated on October 7.  On October 28, Archbishop Quigley dedicated the new and current St. Nicholas Church building.