History
Students and faculty in the Noble Street building in 1912. | When Holy Trinity was founded in April 1910, the Near-North Side neighborhood of Chicago was perhaps the most densely populated Polish community in the world. By one estimate, more than 100,000 Polish parishioners celebrated Catholic Mass within a one-mile radius. However, the opportunities for a quality secondary school education were scarce. Concerned that only financially secure parents could afford to educate their children beyond grammar school, the Rev. Casimir Sztuczko, C.S.C., and the Brothers of Holy Cross established Holy Trinity High School. |
Construction on the current building on Division Street was completed in 1928. | Holy Trinity was initially an all-boys school located at 1110 N. Noble Street, in the former printing plant of a Polish newspaper. Br. Peter Hosinski was the school's first principal and would serve in that role until 1917. He and the other Brothers of Holy Cross created a curriculum to educate students in the American tradition while still honoring their cultural heritage by teaching many courses in Polish. Tuition that first year was $40, a modest sum intended to make a quality education possible for the lowest income families. The Noble Street building was used for two years before it became too limited for a growing school like Holy Trinity. |
Fr. Casimir Stuczko HT Students, 1949 | In 1923, Holy Trinity began a drive for a new home. It was an ambitious undertaking for a young school, but nevertheless continued for several years. The fundraising drive was successful in raising money, as well as in raising Holy Trinity's profile. Enrollment grew from 108 students in 1922 to 242 students in 1927. Construction of the new Holy Trinity building began on September 18, 1927 with the laying of the cornerstone by the Rev. Edward F. Hoban, Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago. In September 1928, 275 students occupied the newly completed building, which was dedicated by Cardinal George Mundelein. |
Holy Trinity building exterior, 1950s | While originally founded to educate Catholic boys of Polish heritage, the school's openness to diversity was apparent as early as 1925, when the first non-Polish student graduated from Holy Trinity. Signs of continued diversity increased as the years passed. In 1943, for the first time, the majority of Holy Trinity were of non-Polish descent. Another first came in 1946 when the curriculum included Polish only as a language course; no other courses were taught in Polish. In the years following World War II, Holy Trinity's enrollment grew to a peak of 700, including many Polish boys who had been dispersed throughout Europe and started new lives in Chicago with the support of the National Catholic Welfare Council. |
Holy Trinity became co-ed in 1984. Pictured, one of the first co-ed HT classes gathers for a reunion in 1992. | In 1960, the Midwest Province of the Brothers of Holy Cross, headquartered at the University of Notre Dame, took over the ownership and operations of Holy Trinity from the Josephinum Brothers of Holy Cross, which had run the school since its inception. Thanks in large part to the dedication of the Brothers and the Midwest Province, Holy Trinity continued to thrive as the surrounding neighborhood of Wicker Park changed. The Polish community slowly moved to the suburbs and the neighborhood gained a new identity as Mexican and Puerto Rican immigrants began settling in the area. Through all of these changes, the Brothers of Holy Cross made sure that Holy Trinity remained a safe haven for its students, a place where they could securely pursue a Holy Cross education. |
Educating the heart and mind: the Holy Trinity tradition continues. | The 1970s and 1980s saw Holy Trinity's student body continue to diversify along with the neighborhood. As more and more of the city's Polish population moved to the suburbs, the student body of Holy Trinity became predominantly African American and Hispanic. In 1984, Holy Trinity became a co-educational high school; the majority of the school's first female students came from Holy Family Academy, which was located across the street and closed in 1983. The development of Holy Trinity continued through the 1990s and 2000s, including the establishment of Friends for a Future, Chicago's first high school corporate internship program and the momentum of its Capital Campaign: Bridge to Inspired Lives, which raised $1.3 million for building improvements and scholarships. |
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As we celebrate our Centennial throughout the 2009-10 academic year, we are proud to look back on our storied history of academic, athletic, personal, and community success, having overcome many challenges to carry out the vision of Blessed Fr. Basil Moreau and the mission of the Brothers of Holy Cross. We look to the future with great hope and excitement, embarking on our next 100 years of educating the hearts and minds of Chicago's young men and women.
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