Loyola University Chicago - Loyolan Yearbook (Chicago, IL)

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Chieago College, e eiqy on Stanoe to grows to Fire had Deh'oz'en ye south- and Sl. rem. fish and elle, LUU5 osszlftarll beloved 7 Father , Father 9 gredlel' lg ll77l0l 9 to Um' ow lllllli ne, keep ur Lady ,ld drove fhe lflkf' Holy Family Church as it looked around 1860. This was the Hrst Jesuit Institution in the Chicago area. The first white man ever to set foot on Chicago soil or conduct religious services in this locality was Reverend James Marquette, Two centuries later a thriving and prosperous little city had taken the place of the wilderness, which had been known to Father Marquette. To this city in 1857, at the invitation of Archbishop Anthony O'Regan, came another '4Black Robe,', Reverend Arnold Damen, S.J., to establish a parish and a college. Father Damen, a native of Holland, responding to the call for priests to serve in the westward expansion of America, sailed for the United States in 1837, to begin his studies in the Jesuit Order at Florissant, Missouri. After his ordination in 1844, he became an outstanding preacher in St. Louis and throughout the Midwest. Father Damen selected a site for his parish in the south- western portion of the city. A small wooden church was erected at the corner of May and Eleventh Streets. Shortly after the cornerstone was laid for the permanent church, Holy Family Church, which stands today after a century of service to God. From the very beginning of his duration in Chicago, Father Damen was possessed with the burning desire familiar to every Jesuit-to found an institution for the higher education of youth. Accordingly, in 1869, Father Damen acquired a site just east of the church and on it built his college. A charter was granted by the state in the name of St. Ignatius College on June 30, 1870. The following September the college opened its doors for the first time and thirty-seven young men applied for admission. The college truly started small, for of the Five courses taught, four-English, Greek, Latin, and Arith- metic-were taught by one man, Mr. Stephens, The other course, German, was taught by Reverend D. Niederkorn, The president of the college was naturally Father Damen. Until 1895, few note-worthy events occurred. The stu- dents came and went, their numbers increased with the years. Good conduct and diligence were encouraged through a system of awards. The new rectors and members of the faculty looked always toward the betterment and harmonious development of the institution while the character ofthe work remained the same. The First class, graduating in 1881, consisted of only two members: Thomas Finn, who later became a Jesuit, and Carter Harrison, seven-times mayor of Chicago. Beginning with the Rectorship of Reverend Henry Dumbach, S.J., in 1900, the college entered upon a new stage of development. The curriculum was improved. A post-graduate course in philosophy was established. In 1906, the Department of Law was introduced. In that year, too, the site of Loyola's present Lake Shore Campus was purchased, at a cost of 8161,000, with the intention that it would one day house university facilities for the school. 9

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THE IES IT OF CHI C0 CELEBRATING A CENTENNIAL OF SERVICE October 8, 7877-on this night looking out over Chicago from high in the wind-blown bell-tower aj St. Ignatius College, one would see the darkened shapes mf the homes of the cigr on all sides, the scene is very peaceful. Now in the distance to the northeast there appears a glimmer, tlze glimmer grows to a flame and thence to a raging inferno, tlze Chicago Fire had started. From its starting point, the corner iyfjepferson and Deffoven Streets, tlze fire, driven by a strong wind, begins to move soutlz- west. Directbi in its path lies Hobr Famibi Parish and St. Ignatius College. It appears as nothing can save them. Reverend Arnold Damen, Sf., who founded the parish and tlze college on the bleak prairies ij Chicago,s south side, wtlf holding a mission in Brookbin at that time. His assistant telegraphed him that there was grave danger fy' his beloved college being destrcyied. The message was handed to Father Damen in the confessional at St. Patrick's Church. Praying for the safely of his college and parish, Father Danien went to tlze altar and remained there alone the greater part rj tlze night. For manyyears he had struggled to amor- fffie the mortgage on tlze church and to raise tlze many to con- lruct St. Ignatius College. Ilfith tears streaming down his cheeks, he made cz vow that, Ut his petition were answered, he would, for all time, lf6'6jJ seven vigil lights burning in front cy' the statue :yr Our Lady U Perpetual Help in Hob Famzbr Church. It is a matter cyf histogr that the wind shgfted and drove the pre eastward across tlze river and afterwards to tlze lake- St. Ignatius College was saved.

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S, llu- Very licvc1't'xicl James lf. Xfaguirc, pri-svnting lfrank Lewis tlu' first annual Loyola L'nivt'rsity llamcn Award. Tlu' Damcn Award is given to Ol1lSl2lIIlllI1Lf .fXnu'ricans for their clrtliczition in tlu' Jesuit tradition to God, to society. and to tlu' nation. Plans call for future awards to lu' uivcn at a major convocation ofthe L'nivt'rsity's fgzculty and students. llu' purchase' of ilu' Lake Shore Czunpus proved to be .tu .uw of great liorcsiulit on Llu' part of Father Dumbach. llt- uiulcrstootl that expansion into thc professional fields iuiglu lu' iu'ccssary. 'lllu' additional land could provide room for this expansion, Two reasons seemed to make it iu1pt'r.uivc that llu' -Icsuits should enter the field of ad- v.uu'cd .uul spccixxlizecl education. 'llu' first was tlu' fact that tlu' college as an organic part ul- ilu' cducguional system was no longer capable of prtultuiug ilu' amount of good accomplished by it in the past. 'lilmis was due to ll gradual change in the tome of .Xuu'ruxui ctltutuion from ilu' liberal arts subiects to the uumrt' spccializctl studies. Because of their lack of uni- versity facilities. tlu' .Icsuits were sufiicring a loss of comrgl of suulcuts .it gi time when they were most in need gf proper guidance. lilu' aucv of tlu' ,Icsuit Centennial was a Civic banquet lionorinrf tlu' lllll outstanding Chiczigozins. The dinner was held in the Grand Ball Rtuuu of tlu' Palmer House in Chicago. l0 The second cause was the increasing fiood of atheism and materialism in the professional schools of the country. The Jesuits understood that coming generations of doctors dentists. lawyers and accountants must be firmly grounded in a Divine lvforal Code. For these reasons ihev entered the field of specialized education. 21, 1909, the state granted a charter under the title of Loyola University, and St. Ignatius College became the College of Arts and Sciences of Loyola a nd On November L'nivZrsitv. Even before this time, however, the expansion to university size had begun. In 1908, the Lincoln School of Law was affiliated, thereby becoming the Law School of St. Ignatius College and eventually the Loyola University School of Law. During the period from 1909 to 1915, various medical schools were afiiliated until in 1915 they passed under the complete control of the trustees and became the Loyola University School of Medicine. The year 1923 marked the beginning of the Department of Home Study. Also in that year, the Chicago College of Dental Surgery was annexed under an agreement by which it became the Dental Department of Loyola Uni- versity. The College of Commerce was started as a night school in 1927, under the Deanship of Henry Chamberlain. Loyola today, one of the finest and largest Catholic Universities in the nation, has an enrollment of more than 8,500 students in sixteen buildings on three widely