Providing support, education and community involvement through the arts
Grace Episcopal Church
August 13 · 7:30 pm | Beethoven Piano Sonatas
August 15 · 7:30 pm | Beethoven Duos
August 16 · 3:00 pm | Beethoven's Archduke Trio and Piano Quartet
Grace Church is the oldest Episcopal Church in continuous use in the Diocese of Chicago. An Episcopal service was first held on the banks of the Fevre (now, Galena) River in 1826, the year Galena was incorporated as a town.
The current building was built in 1849, constructed of limestone quarried on the site, and was consecrated in 1850. Over the next three decades the church has been the recipient of many precious objects — the organ, purchased in 1838 from the Henry Erben Organ Company in New York, is still in use today, as is a silver chalice fashioned from gold and precious stones given by parishioners. The black walnut eagle lectern was one of many improvements made in the early 1880s and the stained glass windows are of irreplaceable Belgian glass and a few of them are in Tiffany style.
In 1893, a major renovation was conducted, extending the church thirty feet into limestone bluff behind the building to create the chancel, sanctuary, a chapel and sacristy. tained glass windows are of irreplaceable Belgian glass and a few of them are in Tiffany style. Fast forward to the end of the 1990s, when years of moisture from the bluffs resulted in the need for an extensive restoration in 2000 and 2001. In 2018, a long desired parish house was been built beside the church, allowing complete accessibility.
In 2017 Grace Church was host to the inaugural RiverSong Music Festival, and this tradition continues in 2019.
Grace Church | 107 S. Prospect Street | Galena, IL 61036 | 815.777.2590 | gracegalena.org
Grace Episcopal Church · Galena, Illinois
Galena Public Library
August 15 · 2:00 pm | Lecture and Exhibit of Period Pianos by Dr. Kenneth Drake
In 1892, prominent Galena banker, Benjamin Franklin Felt petitioned the City Council to fund a free public library. When the council declined, stating that the State of Illinois wouldn’t allot enough money for the project, Felt took the initiative and offered to pay the total costs for two years, donate 1200 books to start the library, and find and pay for a location — with the stipulation that the city of Galena take over and run the library after the initial two years. Truly ahead of his time, an additional requirement of B.F. Felt’s was that four of the nine Library Board Trustees be female! One of those women was Felt’s daughter Anna, a graduate of Wells College, who remained on the board until her death in 1953.
The library officially opened to the public in 1895 in rooms above the Post Office. The library remained in this location until construction on the present building was started in 1906. Funded by a Carnegie grant and the Felt estate, the new library was built of Indiana limestone in the classical Greek architecture style preferred by Andrew Carnegie, as in 1908 the new library opened to the public.
Still in use today the Galena Public Library will be hosting the RiverSong Music Festival lecture by Dr. Kenneth Drake.
Galena Public Library | 601 S. Bench Street | Galena, IL 61036 | 815.777.0200 | galenalibrary.org
Galena Public Library