Lemont and the Civil War

The Old Methodist Church, built in 1861, is said to be the largest recruiting station for the Union Army. Records show that eleven percent of Lemont’s population enlisted during the four years of the war. Seven percent of those who fought did not return. The number of recruitments out of Lemont was even greater than the figures show, since quarry workers living in temporary housing and men from other counties increased enlistments. This was probably because Cook County offered larger bounties for enlistments than other counties. Today a memorial to Lemont’s veterans of the Civil War is in Legion Park, across from Lemont’s train station. The 1861 “Old Stone Church” at 306 Lemont Street is the home of the Lemont Area Historical Society and Museum.