Immaculata High School, later American Islamic College and used by Immanuel Anglican Church. Francis Barry Byrne, architect. Chicago History Museum Collections, 1980.0081.
Rebekah Coffman, curator of religion and community history, and Aries Gomez, Lilly collections fellow, will give a work-in-progress talk about inventorying, researching, re-activating and improving access to Chicago History Museum’s extensive architectural archive. Approached through the goal of recentering the archive on community use and underrepresented or erased histories, this work employs adaptive reuse, ethnic succession, and narrative contexts to create a more complete, representative, and equitable understanding of Chicago’s built environment. The inventory is designed to lay the groundwork for future cataloging of currently uncatalogued materials to more accurately reflect communities documented in collections and is conceived as a critical next step in assessing the strengths of CHM’s architectural holdings to identify opportunities for deeper engagement and interpretation. This work is ongoing and developing in anticipation of the forthcoming exhibition, Everyday Sacred, which explores concepts of sacredness and the built environment through themes of ritual, memory, memorial, and belief.
ABOUT THE VENUE FOR THIS PROGRAM
Built in 1902 as a storefront and two flats, 2716 W. Division Street served as a commercial space and residence for decades. From the 1930s to 1960s, its storefront was home to Segal’s Shoes, a Jewish family-owned business that served Humboldt Park’s then growing Eastern European communities. In 1999, Adalberto United Methodist Church was formed, and in 2006 it became the center of the New Sanctuary Movement when Elvira Arrellano took sanctuary against deportation within its walls. It continued to serve as a place of sanctuary and worship until its closure in 2023. Today, muralist and artist Luis Raúl Muñoz is transforming the space into a gallery and community meeting space that reactivates the building in new ways while honoring its sanctuary roots.
Buena Memorial Presbyterian Church, now demolished. Ivar Viehe-Naess, architect. Chicago History Museum Collections, 1984.0197.
K.A.M Synagogue, now Rainbow PUSH Coalition. Alfred Alschuler, architect. Chicago History Museum Collections, 1980.0311.
Epworth Methodist Church, now Barakah Masjid. Tielbal & Fugard. Chicago History Museum Collections, 1983.0357.
