History
St. Charles figures in some of the earliest accounts of organized religious life in Kane County. According to The Past and Present of Kane County, Illinois (1878), the city was home to Father Clarke, described as the first Congregational minister in Kane County. Clarke was based in St. Charles and was, by the time of the 1878 publication, deceased — mourned, the account notes, by those who had known him. (Source: Past and Present of Kane County, Illinois (1878, Internet Archive))
In 1838, St. Charles was the site of an early Episcopal service conducted by Bishop Chase, the Episcopal Bishop who would later found Jubilee College. The service was held in a local schoolhouse near the residence of a Dr. Crawford. Contemporary accounts describe Chase as a tall, large man with white hair who wore scarlet Episcopal robes — a striking figure in the frontier settlement. (Source: Past and Present of Kane County, Illinois (1878, Internet Archive))
St. Charles was also an early destination for settlers arriving from the east. Leonard Howard (born 1810), a contractor and builder, arrived in St. Charles on March 9, 1837, having moved to Chicago the previous year. Howard had been apprenticed to Theodore Coburn and, according to the Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois and History of Kane County (1904), had constructed the first cut-stone buildings in Buffalo, New York, in 1828. He subsequently worked on notable Chicago buildings including the old Sherman Hotel before settling in St. Charles, where he was employed as a depot agent. He had married Caroline Esther Smith, daughter of Isaac and Roxy Morton Smith, on January 27, 1828. (Source: Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois and History of Kane County (1904, Internet Archive))
Notable Associations
- Father Clarke — Reportedly the first Congregational minister in Kane County, associated with St. Charles throughout his career. His tenure is noted in the county's early religious history alongside figures such as Elder Ambrose of Elgin (Baptist) and Rev. William Kimball of Bloomingdale (Methodist). (Source: Past and Present of Kane County, Illinois (1878, Internet Archive))
- Bishop Chase — Held what may be one of the earliest Episcopal services in Kane County at St. Charles in 1838. Chase is noted elsewhere as the founder of Jubilee College. (Source: Past and Present of Kane County, Illinois (1878, Internet Archive))
- Leonard Howard — Contractor and builder who arrived in St. Charles on March 9, 1837, and worked as a depot agent there. Howard had previously been involved in significant construction projects in Buffalo and Chicago. His son, Charles F. Howard (July 2, 1839 – February 17, 1902), was born in Donaldsonville, Louisiana, and later became a farmer and merchant in Dundee, Illinois. Charles served in the Fifty-second Illinois cavalry regiment during the Civil War (approximately three years) and subsequently enlisted in Company C, Ninth Illinois Cavalry in 1865. He married Mary Oatman in 1864, became a partner with M. T. Barrows in a hardware business in 1874, and was elected Justice of the Peace in the 1880s. (Source: Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois and History of Kane County (1904, Internet Archive))
Sources
- The Past and Present of Kane County, Illinois (1878). Available via Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/pastpresentofkan00peir#offset-719766
- Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois and History of Kane County (1904). Available via Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/historicalencycl00unse#offset-4696264