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News, events, updates, and tidbits from the Presbyterian Historical Society. Use tags to read related articles or sort by author for similar posts written by PHS staff members and volunteers.

October 29, 2021

--by Lumen Lugo-Roman

As October, LGBTQ+ history month whizzes by, discussing the relationship between members of the LGBTQIA+ community and the Presbyterian church is imperative. Though the road has been rocky, there are significant organizations within the church who have fought for LGBTQIA+ rights. An amazing example of one of these organizations was That All May Freely Serve (TAMFS). This organization founded in 1992, advocated for an inclusive and welcoming Church and for...

July 13, 2021
Sunday service at Erie Chapel, undated. Photo courtesy of the Chicago History Museum.

--by Maureen Hellwig

This post is the second in a series looking back a the history of Erie Neighborhood House in Chicago. To read the first installment, click here.

What was the critical factor in the longevity of Erie House? The core of Erie’s story, and a major contribution to its success, is strong leadership. While...

May 3, 2021
Erie Neighborhood House, 2019. Photo courtesy of Maureen Hellwig.

--by Maureen Hellwig 

Those of us who take an interest in history are generally drawn to it because it is full of good stories. One such story, a Chicago story, that has always grabbed my attention, pertains to the birth and growth of the settlement house movement before, during, and after Hull House and Jane Addams. My view is that it was a faith-based movement – not necessarily church-based, although churches were...

September 9, 2016

--By Richard P. Poethig

Change was in the air when our family returned to the U.S. in the Spring of 1972 from Manila. The demise of American manufacturing was becoming a national preoccupation. The loss of the U.S. industrial base, and the jobs that went with it...

June 15, 2016

After a distinguished and peripatetic career as a journalist, activist, and lecturer, Ida B. Wells--who had urged black families to keep a Winchester rifle by the front door--put down roots in Chicago and became a Presbyterian.

Wells was born into slavery in Holly Springs, Mississippi, July 16, 1862; her family fled for Memphis following an outbreak of yellow fever. Her career as a champion of civil rights began in 1884 when she sued the Memphis and Charleston Railroad, which had forced her to leave her seat in first class, winning in the lower courts and losing on appeal. She taught...

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