Overview

In 1851, Father Joseph Kuenster of the St. Boniface parish in Quincy, formed the St. Aloysius Orphan Society to support a parish orphanage for children that were left dependent due to a recent cholera epidemic.[1] Monthly subscriptions and donations from local citizens and fundraising activities, including annual picnics and fairs, provided most of its annual income.[2] The building was dedicated on April 18, 1865.[3] Prior to the dedication, children were placed in the care of local families.[4]

In 1944, the local bishop, James Griffin, was set on closing the institution, despite it never benefitting from a share in the diocesan charity collections.[5] In June 1944, the priest-director of Catholic Charities, the bureau in Springfield, Illinois, paid a “friendly visit” to the orphanage. However, just a month later, Bishop James Griffin asked the charities’ board to sign over ownership of the building and land to Quincy College.[6] After multiple meetings of the board and members of the Orphan Society, in early 1945, the directors reported a two-thirds vote to keep the orphanage open.[7] Bishop Griffin responded by ordering the sisters to leave the orphanage at once, which effectively closed it. When the society’s officers visited Bishop Griffin and asked for his reasons for closing it, he gave none.[8]

Institution Name

Alternative Names: St. Aloysius’ Orphan Society, St. Aloysius Orphanage

Type of Institution: Orphanage, School

Location and Building

Address: 1934 Vine Street / Northwest Corner of 20^th and College (Vine) Street.

Locality: Quincy

County: Adams County

State: Illinois

Notes on the building:

The original building was built in 1865 and remodeled in 1883. The building was demolished and rebuilt by the Orphan Society in 1919. Architect Martin J. Geise designed the new building, which measured 89×50 feet.[9]

Administration Information

Date of Founding: 1851 / 1865

Date of Overall Closure: 1944

Notes: The Orphan Society was founded in 1851. The orphanage itself was built in 1865.

Administration:

1904: St. Aloysius Orphan Society
1910: Private corporation
1913: Managed by six Sisters of Notre Dame
1921: Conducted by the School Sisters of Notre Dame
1923: Roman Catholic Church

Contributors/Support

1913: County pays two dollars and fifty cents per month for each dependent child committed to the home.

Notable People

Father Joseph Kuenster: Pastor of St. Boniface Parish in Quincy in 1852.[10]

Intake Information and Requirements

Intake Gender/Sex: Female, Male

Intake Age:

1913: under 16
1923: infants-14 years
1933: 2-18

Intake Ethnicity/Race

1910: White
1923: White
1933: White

Intake Specifics:

1904: Orphans and half-orphans
1910: Orphan
1923: Dependent

Number of Residents:

1884: 61 children

1921: 19 boys and 17 girls

1933: 39 chidlren.

Previous Residents:

Henry Henkhaus

First of two children accepted into the care by the Society. He was cared for by a local family and later adopted by John B. Vonderheide.[11]

Hinkman Children

Dorothy, Mary, and William.[12]

Hunolt Children

T. F. Hunolt’s four children were brought to St. Aloysius Orphans’ Home in September 1925.[13]
The children of T. F. Hunolt were residents of St. Aloysius Orphanage on July 19, 1928.[14]
Helen, Christine, and Martha Hunolt were staying at the home in August 1929.[15]
Miss Helen Hunolt was a resident on 7 May 1931.[16]

Mary Kathleen Smith[17]

Resided in the home in July 1932.[18]

Tirichans (No Given Name)

Girl who was among the first to be accepted into care by the Society. She was placed with a local family for care.[19]

Records

Online

Adams County, Illinois, Genealogy Trails

St. Aloysius Orphanage: http://genealogytrails.com/ill/adams/staloysius/staloysius.htm
List of Children Staying at St. Aloysius Orphanage: http://genealogytrails.com/ill/adams/staloysius/staloysiuschild.htm
Detailed information about Each Child Staying at St. Aloysius Orphanage: http://genealogytrails.com/ill/adams/staloysius/staloysiuschildinfo.htm
Letters and Pictures: http://genealogytrails.com/ill/adams/staloysius/staloypics.htm
News Stories about St. Aloysius Orphanage: http://genealogytrails.com/ill/adams/staloysius/staloyhistory.html

Archives and Museums

Historical Society of Quincy and Adams County, Illinois.

https://www.hsqac.org/research

Sources

“Architect Martin J. Geise…,” The Catholic Tribune (St. Joseph, Missouri), 2 February 1918, page 6, col. 1. Accessed at Newspapers.com.

Board of State Commissioners of Public Charities. 1880. Sixth Biennial Report of the Board of State Commissioners of Public Charities of the State of Illinois, November 1880. Springfield, Illinois: H. W. Rokker, State Printer and Binder. https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/OobIAAAAMAAJ.

—. 1884. Eighth Biennial Report of the Board State Commissioners of Public Charities of the State of Illinois, November 1884. Springfield, Illinois: H. W. Rokker, State Printer and Binder. https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/DKTIAAAAMAAJ.

Illinois State Charities Commission. 1911. Second Annual Report of the State Charities Commission to the Honorable Charles S. Deneen, Governor of Illinois. Springfield, Illinois: Illinois State Journal Company. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Annual_Report/pFgZAQAAIAAJ.

Oates, Mary J. 1995. The Catholic Philanthropic Tradition in America. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Catholic_Philanthropic_Tradition_in/6s6VilLfPfgC?hl=en&gbpv=0.

Peters, Susan and Jane Morris. 2022. “Fate, Friendship and Faith,” Herald-Whig, 11 June 2022. https://www.whig.com/lifestyles/history/fate-friendship-and-faith/article_0f4faf92-e8e7-11ec-8c58-1fb593010acc.html.

Ryan, Reverend James H. 1921. Directory of Catholic Colleges and Schools. Washington, D.C.: National Catholic Welfare Council, Bureau of Education. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Directory_of_Catholic_Colleges_and_Schoo/UrJEAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0.

United States Bureau of the Census. 1905. Benevolent Institutions 1904. Washington, D. C.: Governmental Printing Office. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Benevolent_Institutions_1904/GKpMAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0.

—. 1913. Benevolent Institutions 1910. Washington, D. C.: Governmental Printing Office. https://books.google.com/books?id=fmgGAQAAIAAJ.

—. 1927. Children Under Institutional Care, 1923: Statistics of Dependent, Neglected, and Delinquent Children in Institutions and Under the Supervision of Other Agencies for the Care of Children, with a Section on Adults in Certain Types of Institutions. Washington, D.C.: Governmental Printing Office. https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=PFXZTGK-ZyAC&rdid=book-PFXZTGK-ZyAC&rdot=1.

—. 1935. Children Under Institutional Care and in Foster Homes. Washington, D. C.: Governmental Printing Office. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Children_Under_Institutional_Care_and_in/rnQGAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0.

[1] Peters, Susan and Jane Morris. 2022. “Fate, Friendship and Faith,” Herald-Whig, 11 June 2022. https://www.whig.com/lifestyles/history/fate-friendship-and-faith/article_0f4faf92-e8e7-11ec-8c58-1fb593010acc.html.

[2] Oates, Mary J. 1995. The Catholic Philanthropic Tradition in America. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Catholic_Philanthropic_Tradition_in/6s6VilLfPfgC?hl=en&gbpv=0.

[3] Collins, William H. and Cicero F. Perry. 1905. Past and Present of the City of Quincy and Adams County, Illinois. Chicago: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company. 235. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Past_and_Present_of_the_City_of_Quincy_a/XlQ0AQAAMAAJ.

[4] Peters, Susan and Jane Morris. 2022.

[5] Oates, Mary J. 1995.

[6] Oates, Mary J. 1995.

[7] Oates, Mary J. 1995.

[8] Oates, Mary J. 1995.

[9] “Architect Martin J. Geise…,” The Catholic Tribune (St. Joseph, Missouri), 2 February 1918, page 6, col. 1. Accessed at Newspapers.com.

[10] Peters, Susan and Jane Morris. 2022. “Fate, Friendship and Faith,” Herald-Whig, 11 June 2022. https://www.whig.com/lifestyles/history/fate-friendship-and-faith/article_0f4faf92-e8e7-11ec-8c58-1fb593010acc.html.

[11] Peters, Susan and Jane Morris. 2022.

[12] Peters, Susan and Jane Morris. 2022.

[13] “T. F. Hunolt and sister…” The Edina Sentinel (Edina, Missouri), 24 September 1925, p. 4, col. 1. Accessed at Newspapers.com.

[14] “T. F. Hunolt…” The Edina Sentinel (Edina, Missouri), 19 July 1928, p. 6, col. 6. Accessed at Newspapers.com.

[15] “Mr. and Mrs. T. M. Durk of Quincy and the latter’s nieces…” The Edina Sentinel (Edina, Missouri), 22 August 1929, p. 4, col. 3. Accessed at Newspapers.com.

[16] “Miss Helen Hunolt of St. Aloysius Home…” The Edina Sentinel (Edina, Missouri), 7 May 1931, p. 6, col. 1. Accessed at Newspapers.com.

[17] Peters, Susan and Jane Morris. 2022.

[18] “Mrs. Gara Smith and little daughter, Kathleen…” The Canton Press-News (Canton, Missouri), 28 July 1932, p. 3, col. 4. Accessed at Newspapers.com.

[19] Peters, Susan and Jane Morris. 2022.