Photographs
Magic Lantern Slides
Magic Lantern Slideshow - Early Grand Rapids ➔ Lantern Slide, Catholic Church
Identifier:
2021.6.41.42Description:
This hand-painted photographic lantern slide labeled "catholic church built in 1837 by Louis Campau" depicts a view of a white church at sunset.This slide is part of slideshow 2021.6.41 about early Grand Rapids utilized for educational purposes by the Grand Rapids Public Museum.
Date:
circa 1875Materials:
GlassDimensions:
4" h 3.25" wCurrent Location Status:
In StorageCollection Tier:
Tier 2Related Entities:
Grand Rapids Public Museum (identified by)Alternate names: Grand Rapids Lyceum of Natural History, Grand Rapids Scientific Club, GRPM, Kent Scientific Institute, Kent Scientific Museum, Public Museum of Grand Rapids, Public Museum of West Michigan
The Grand Rapids Lyceum of Natural History was established in 1854 by a group of civic leaders, inspired by a movement sweeping the country. Followers of the Lyceum Movement believed that education, in the form of libraries, museums, lectures and discussions, and public schools, could help right the illnesses of society and preserve democracy.
In the early 1860s the Civil War had put a halt to the activities of the Lyceum. But in the summer of 1865, the war was over, and the enthusiasm of a group of teenage boys for new ideas about science and nature would bring the fledgling Museum back to life.
In 1868 the Grand Rapids Lyceum of Natural History and the Grand Rapids Scientific Club merged to form the Kent Scientific Institute. The new organization successfully combined the youthful enthusiasm of local high school students with the experience of prominent civic leaders to create a successful museum for their community.
In 1881, the Kent Scientific Institute reached an agreement with the Board of Education which allowed them to store their collections at Central High School.
In February of 1903, the Board of Education agreed to purchase the Howlett House, at the corner of Jefferson and Washington, to be the permanent home of the Kent Scientific Institute.
The "new" Grand Rapids Public Museum was built during the Great Depression with WPA funds from the Federal Government. The building itself was a radical departure from most contemporary museums, and was described by Museum Director Frank DuMond as "accessible as a dime store and friendly as your next door neighbor."
The Grand Rapids Public Museum began experimenting with planetarium equipment in the early 1960s, and hired its first curator for the new technology in 1964. The planetarium was eventually named after Grand Rapids astronaut Roger B. Chaffee, who was killed in the Apollo I disaster on January 27, 1967.
In 1989, the Grand Rapids Public Museum took over the management of the Voigt House in the Heritage Hill Neighborhood. The opulent home was built in 1895 and includes more than 100 years of the Voigt family's possessions.
The Grand Rapids Public Museum's current facility opened in 1994 on the west bank of the Grand River in the heart of downtown. It contains three floors of exhibits, the Roger B. Chaffee Planetarium, the Cook Carousel Pavilion, Meijer Theater, cafe, and gift shop.
Louis Campau (is related to)
Louis Campau was born in Detroit on August 11, 1791 to settler Louis Campau and his wife Therese Moran. His family came from a long line of French explorers and settlers of Canada and Michigan.
During the War of 1812, Louis Campau joined the French American military company under Captain Rene de Marsac and fought in a failed attempt to defend Detroit. After the war, he left Detroit for the Saginaw Valley to work as an Indian trader with his uncle, Joseph Campau, who had invested in his meager childhood education. In the six years he worked under Joseph, Louis established himself in eastern Michigan among prominent leaders. As a result, he was influential in founding Saginaw in 1819.
In 1819, Louis had married Ann Knaggs in Detroit, but due to his work travel they rarely saw each other, and Ann died in 1824. In 1825, Louis remarried, this time to his former Captain’s daughter, Sophie de Marsac. Having sold his business in Saginaw in 1823, he sought greater adventure near the Grand River, where rumors told of heavily populated Native American villages ready for trading. It is speculated he settled in western Michigan as an agent of Mr. Brewster in Detroit, to establish a competitor for the American Fur Company.
In 1827 he arrived in what is now Grand Rapids as the first European to settle the area. Sophie, his wife, followed him to Grand Rapids after several months. Others followed, including Louis’ brother and trading partner Toussaint Campau and Sophie’s sister, Emily de Marsac, who eventually married in Grand Rapids in 1834. In 1831, Louis Campau bought a tract of land bounded by Michigan Street, Fulton Street, Division Avenue, and the Grand River for $90. This comprises the heart of modern Grand Rapids. Eventually, as he sold plots of this land to other settlers – such as Lucius Lyon –and family members, this tract of land was platted into blocks, lots and streets. In 1833, the register of deeds of Kalamazoo County recorded this area as the “Village of Grand Rapids.”
Louis continued to buy outlying plots of land and expand the village along the east side of the Grand River throughout the 1830s. Through the sale of these plots to pioneers, Campau amassed a small fortune, which he invested in a comfortable life and enterprises in his community. These include the Eagle Tavern, the first hostelry in Grand Rapids, and the Grand River Times, the village’s first newspaper. He also built the first Catholic church for the village, on Division and Monroe avenues. He was highly generous and welcomed early colonists shelter in his log house, as well as white and Native visitors to his lavish garden. Due to his influence and generosity, in 1838 Campau was elected trustee of the village of Grand Rapids and also the president of the People’s Bank.
In 1839, however, Campau found himself nearly bankrupt after all his investments. He was forced to divide his properties among his brothers and colleagues, deeding the Catholic church on Division to his mother, Madame Therese Campau, who sold it to the Congregationalists in 1841. The iron cross that stood on its spire is now near the graves of Louis and his wife, Sophie. Despite his financial troubles, he remained in his mansion at 424 Fulton Street East from 1838 until 1862. At that time, he and his wife moved to a smaller home on the corner of Ellsworth Avenue and Almy Street.
In his last years, Campau was known for his fondness for the city’s children, since he had no offspring of his own. He also was known for his intense loyalty to the Union Army during the Civil War, due to his service in the War of 1812.
Louis Campau died of a lingering illness on April 13, 1871, and is buried in Saint Andrew’s Cemetery.