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14 | February 14, 2019 | The glencoe anchor OPINION
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Glencoe: Yesterday and Today
Celebrating the history of St. Paul AME Church
Glencoe Historical
Society
Contributing Columnist
February is Black
History Month, an
opportunity to reflect
on the extraordinary
and yet oft-forgotten accomplishments
of African
Americans in our community.
Throughout most
of Glencoe’s incorporated
history, there has been
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one constant in the black
community and that is the
St. Paul African Methodist
Episcopal Church.
Founded in 1884, it is
the second oldest church
in the village. In the early
1880s, the community
was still quite small but
had a group of African
American families who
needed a place to worship.
Homer F. Wilson, a
successful businessman
and leader of the black
community, initially
hosted 18 friends and
neighbors in his home
at 425 Adams St. for
Sunday worship before
the group decided they
needed a proper church.
When the group lacked
the financial resources to
fund the building, Wilson
North shore
and his wife mortgaged
their home to obtain the
money to purchase the lot
and build a church at 336
Washington Ave. where
the current church building
still stands.
There are no known
photos of the original St.
Paul A.M.E. Church but
the late Wilson Rankin
left a vivid description of
the building that became
the center of religious and
social life for many African
American families in
Glencoe.
“It was a gray, frame
structure [with] high
cathedral ceilings, a
modified steeple and a
high roof. … [It had a]
beautiful choir loft [and]
a beautiful pipe organ
… a beautiful pulpit,
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The property at 336 Washington Ave. has been the home of the St. Paul A.M.E.
Church for 135 years. This 1969 photo shows the church as it looked 50 years ago.
Photo Submitted
pews, [and] three wide
aisles. … It was like an
old country church – well
kept, well maintained
inside – a potbellied stove
in the center of the floor.
... [It] was a church built
with a lot of hard work,
a lot of toil, and a lot of
sweat.”
Rankin’s beautiful
church served the community
for more than
40 years before tragedy
befell the property. In the
early morning hours of
September 17, 1930, arsonists
set the church on
fire. Rankin remembered
“being awakened … in
the middle of the night,
but it appeared to be daylight.
… Our church was
burning! I can remember
the group … in one little
huddle and just watching
all the work, toil and
sweat go up in flames.
… We prayed silently. …
The arsonist felt that by
destroying the church,
they would destroy the
Black population. However,
the strong roots of
the Black community
were not destroyed. The
church was rebuilt in
1931, and continued to
grow.”
When Reverend Hyman
Mills arrived at St. Paul
A.M.E. just a few years
later in the fall of 1937,
he found an enthusiastic
and committed group of
165 parishioners who also
had a $1,800 mortgage
five years in arrears. The
total indebtedness of
the church was $3,500,
but Rev. Mills believed
that he could raise the
money to pay off the debt
through concerts given
by a good choir. After
tryouts, 30 voices were
selected and rehearsals
began on Friday evenings
when the church came
alive with the sounds of
treasured spirituals and
gospel hymns. The choir
performed publicly for
the first time at the Winnetka
Community house
in the spring of 1938 and
by March of 1941, the
mortgage and outstanding
debt had been paid in full
and the church was planning
for improvements
funded by income from
one of the finest touring
black choirs in the
Midwest.
The church that the
choir built stood until the
early 1990s when it was
replaced with the larger
structure that is the home
of the congregation today
– 135 years after Homer
F. Wilson and his wife
opened the doors of their
Glencoe home to a small
group of dedicated African
Americans. The current
congregation, led by
the Rev. Dwayne A. Gary,
worships every Sunday
at 11 a.m. and welcomes
all members of the community
to come and join
in the historic fellowship
of the St. Paul A.M.E.
Church of Glencoe.
Glencoe: Yesterday and
Today is a biweekly column
submitted by the Glencoe
Historical Society. Do you
know a resident – living or
dead – who deserves consideration
for the Glencoe Sesquicentennial
Hall of Fame?
Go to www.glencoehistory.
org or www.glencoe150.org.