The History of Hillside Mater Dolorosa Seminary
Hillside (population: 8,155) is located in western Cook County, about 10 miles west of
downtown Chicago, The community is known for being the hub of several expressways that serve the region. Interstate
290 cuts through the village from east to west, as Interstate 294 meets up with I-290 near the village's northwest
boundary. Not only does the expressway sysem divides the community, but has also been a contributor to its development, as
were the rail systems in Hillside's early years.
The first settlers put down stakes in the 1840's, establishing farms
and as well as a church and school at the intersection of what is now Wolf and 22nd Street. This item about the village
of HIllside states that "...even though most of Hillside's later development was north of 12th Street, Immanuel Lutheran Church and
School were included within village limits, giving Hillside its distinctive shape."
Limestone was found in the 1850's by farmer Marion Covell just a few feet below the surface of his property.
He turned the farm into a quarry in 1854 that continued to operate until the mid-1970s, as it supplied
crushed stone used for building roads throughout Chicagoland. However, the quarry was acquired by
the John Sexton Company in 1979 was turned into a sanitary landfill, despite protests from village residents.
Hillside is also known for its cemeteries, including Mount Carmel, which opened in 1894. The resting place
of several bishops, archbishops, and cardinals from the Archdiocese of Chicago is at Mount Carmel in the Bishop's
Mausoleum.
