Park Presbyterian Church in Streator celebrates 100 years in its church building

Park Presbyterian Church in Streator is celebrating 100 years in its church building.

A family celebration is planned 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 10, on Vermillion Street in front of the church and inside the church at 201 N. Vermillion St.

Organ and piano concerts, tours of the church, refreshments, service projects, church history and a quilt raffle will be part of the celebration indoors, a 100-year-old toy train, sidewalk chalk art, airbrush tattoos, bouncy house, water balloon toss and egg races.

The celebration will follow the church’s monthly free lunch 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 10, hosted by the Park Church Deacons and Hardscrabble Lions Club at Park Place, 406 E. Hickory St.

A 10 a.m. service Sunday, Sept. 11, in the Park Church Sanctuary will honor long-time members.

While Park Presbyterian church is 164 years old, its building is100 years old. The building is the third one on its site. The cornerstone was laid on Sept. 11, 1921. The first service was May 24, 1922.

Park Presbyterian is the oldest church in Streator dating back to its beginning in Eagle Township in 1858 and its relocation to Hardscrabble and then the newly named Unionville in 1867. Unionville was a coal mining town at the time and boasted about 1,000 residents.

In 1870, the Chicago, Wilmington and Vermilllion Coal Company donated this tract of land for the building of the first church. At that time, there were about 65 members, and a manse was built. In 1876, 43 new members were added. There was a minister and a student minister at the time. The first women’s prayer group was organized in 1879.

By 1882, membership had climbed to 248 members, and the congregation decided it needed a new building. The first chapel was moved to 706 N. Vermillion St. to become a home. Park Presbyterian celebrated its silver anniversary in 1883. Building No. 2 was a brick structure and dedicated in 1884 at a cost of $10,150.

In 1885, Park Church set up Mission Sabbath School designed to serve children of miners. Soon thereafter, three successive mission were organized: Logan School, Johnson Street and Finley Street to expand the service to children of miners. By 1890, membership boomed to 515. Three young men from the congregation entered the ministry.

The first organ was a Lyon and Healy organ dedicated in 1900. In 1909, two ladies went into missionary work in Persia. Ms. Murray stayed there in service for 50 years until she retired. In 1916, Prairie Church southwest of Streator, merged with Park Presbyterian.

In 1920, the continued growth meant a larger church was needed. W.C. James, a Chicago architect, was hired to design the present Georgian Style edifice. In 1921, the manse was torn down and the building was moved north to become a home. During that construction period, services were at the Congregational Church on North Bloomington (that church merged with Park Church in the 1967).

The groundbreaking ceremony was on July 17, 1921, and the cornerstone was laid on Sept. 11, 1921. This building cost $90,000 without furnishings. The dedication was on May 24, 1922. The building is in the Georgian style. The front columns mirror those of the Masonic Lodge and Elks Lodge across the park to the west.