{"nrhp_refnum":"96000514","name":"St. Mary's Church","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"308 St. Charles Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Beaverville","county":"Iroquois County","state":"IL","lat":40.95148237050006,"lon":-87.65218353191145,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1996-05-02","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"St. Mary's Church is a limestone Roman Catholic church at 308 St. Charles Avenue in Beaverville, Iroquois County, Illinois. Its cornerstone was laid in 1909 and construction finished in 1911, to designs by Chicago architect Joseph Molitor.","why_significant":"The church is locally significant under Criterion C for architecture, as an eclectic Romanesque Revival and Renaissance Revival design with a central octagonal dome and twin towers. It is described as a one-of-a-kind rural example of a style mix more common in large cities such as Chicago. It also marks the start of a productive period in architect Joseph Molitor's career.","narrative":"St. Mary's Church is a large limestone church on St. Charles Avenue in Beaverville, a small town in northeastern Iroquois County. The cornerstone was laid in August 1909 and the building was finished in 1911. Chicago architect Joseph Molitor designed it with rock-faced limestone walls quarried in Bedford, Indiana, round-arched openings, twin 73-foot towers, a rose window, and a red clay tile roof over a central octagonal dome. Inside, a 65-foot plaster dome rises above the nave, and 21 stained glass windows depict the life of Mary. The nomination describes the design as an eclectic blend of Romanesque, Renaissance and Byzantine influences, modeled on Chicago church prototypes with central domes and twin towers. It is presented as a rare rural example of that urban style. The church was also an early work in a burst of Catholic church commissions by Molitor in Chicago between 1911 and 1915. The 15-acre grounds hold two cemeteries, a rectory and other buildings.","period_of_significance":"1911","architect_builder":"Molitor, Joseph, Architect","architectural_style":"Romanesque; Renaissance","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Still used as a church; the property also includes an active cemetery, a rectory and a single dwelling.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.397613-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/98/8929/28892998/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/96000514.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000514/9f03900c19-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000514/9f03900c19-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St._Mary%27s_in_Beaverville_from_northwest.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St._Mary%27s_in_Beaverville_from_northwest.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28892998","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Mary%27s_Church_(Beaverville,_Illinois)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7590202"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/iroquois-county/st-marys-church-96000514/"}