Niles in Berrien County, Michigan — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Father Claude Jean Allouez S. J.

Photographed By Duane Hall, September 6, 2013

1. Father Claude Jean Allouez S. J. Marker

At the base of the memorial

Inscription.

To the memory of
Father Claude Jean Allouez S. J.
Whose intrepid courage won the admiration of the Indians and whose apostolic zeal earned for him the title of the Francis Xavier of the American Missions. Father Allouez was born at St. Didier, France, 1622 and died near this spot August 27th 1689.
Erected by the Woman's Progressive League of Niles, Michigan
1918.

Erected 1919 by Woman's Progressive League of Niles.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Churches & Religion • Colonial Era • Exploration • Women. A significant historical year for this entry is 1622.

Location. 41° 48.857′ N, 86° 15.596′ W. Marker is in Niles, Michigan, in Berrien County. Marker can be reached from Bond Street, 0.3 miles north of Front Street, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Niles MI 49120, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within one mile of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Fort St. Joseph (about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); Ring Lardner (approx. 0.6 miles away); Saint Mary’s (approx. ¾ mile away); PA-WA-TING (approx. 0.9 miles away); Trinity Church (approx.

Paid Advertisement

Click on the ad for more information.
Please report objectionable advertising to the Editor.

Click or scan to see
this page online

one mile away); Wesley United Methodist Church (approx. one mile away); The Old Fifth Street Viaduct (approx. 1.1 miles away); Parrott Civil War Cannon (approx. 1.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Niles.

More about this marker. In reply to a request from the Michigan Historical Commission in 1921, Catherine Francis Babbitt, the chair of the Historical Committee of the Woman's Progressive League of Niles at the time of erection of the memorial, reported the following in regards to the Claude Jean Allouez memorial:

     About a stone's throw from the site of Fort St. Joseph, for many years there stood a rude wooden cross which local tradition had always regarded as the marker for the grave of Father Claude Allouez.
     William Isaac Cummings, a local pioneer who walked by the wooden cross almost daily when he was a boy, acquired from the landowners a plot of land around the cross of wood on the condition that a cross of granite or iron would be erected.
     To accomplish the work, the Women's Progressive League of Niles teamed with Mr. Cummings. By May 1918 they had raised sufficient funds to purchase a 10 1/2 foot high memorial from

Father Claude Jean Allouez S. J. Memorial image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Duane Hall, September 6, 2013

2. Father Claude Jean Allouez S. J. Memorial

E.T. Kies of Kalamazoo with a bronze tablet designed by the Detroit Mausoleum Equipment Company. The memorial consisted of a Latin cross in Barre granite, mounted on two bases, with the bronze tablet affixed to the lower part of the stone. The inscription on the tablet was written by Reverend Dr. John Cavanaugh, President of the Notre Dame University.
     The memorial did not arrive until June 7, 1919, as it was delayed in transit on account of war material taking precedence on all railroads.
     Excavation of the site needed to be done for footings for the memorial. To avoid disturbing the grave of Father Allouez, it was decided to erect the new memorial twelve feet from the old wooden cross.
     As they excavated in the area of the new memorial, the workmen unearthed coffin nails and the bones of a human skeleton believed to be that of a white man.
     The unearthed remains were gathered together, placed in a box, and buried at the foot of the new memorial cross.

Based on this evidence and the supposition that it was natural and reasonable that Father Allouez died near the scene of his labors, it was concluded by the editors of the Michigan History Magazine that this location was the final resting place of Father Allouez.

Source: "Notes and Comment." Michigan History Magazine V January-April 1921: 289-293. Print.

Photographed By Duane Hall, September 6, 2013

3. Father Claude Jean Allouez S. J. Memorial

Steps from Bond Street to the Memorial image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Duane Hall, September 6, 2013

4. Steps from Bond Street to the Memorial

Photographed By Trevor L Whited, July 11, 2022

5. Father Claude Jean Allouez S. J. Marker

This view is from behind the cross looking towards the road.

Credits. This page was last revised on July 10, 2022. It was originally submitted on September 10, 2013, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas. This page has been viewed 1,682 times since then and 45 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on September 10, 2013, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas. 5. submitted on July 10, 2022, by Trevor L Whited of Kokomo, Indiana.