Proud to be a Luxembourger in Aurora

By Susan Dibble

sdibble@dailyherald.com

“If you want to upset a Luxembourger, call him a German,” said Kevin Wester, executive director and CEO of the Luxembourg American Cultural Society.

Immigrants from the tiny nation of Luxembourg might have spoken German as a second language, but they had a distinct heritage of their own. That heritage along with its impact on the local area is portrayed in the exhibit, “Luxembourg — USA: A Migration Story,” on display through July 31 at the Aurora Historical Society's headquarters at the David L. Pierce Art and History Center, 20 E. Downer Place, Aurora.

The traveling exhibit produced by the Luxembourg government is augmented by photos and artifacts from Aurora's own Luxembourgish population. One display lists nearly 300 Luxembourgish surnames common in Aurora such as Jungles, Reuland and Wolsfelt.

“We're happy to have this (exhibit) because it's such a strong influence in Aurora,” said John Jaros, executive director of the Aurora Historical Society. “The first Luxembourgers came in 1850. At that time, they were part of a new immigration.”

Primarily farmers, the initial wave of Luxembourgish immigrants settled in the Big Woods area, now known as Marywood on the northeast side of Aurora. They joined Irish, German and French Canadians who arrived in the mid-1800s in attending Aurora's only Catholic church.

But each ethnic group soon wanted its own place of worship and Luxembourgers joined German immigrants in forming St. Nicholas Parish in 1862. References to St. Nicholas as the “German church” are a bit of a misnomer, Jaros said.

“The vast majority of the founding members were Luxembourgers,” he said.

Marywood farmers next decided they wanted to attend church closer to home and started Annunciation Parish in 1875.

The next wave of Luxembourgish immigrants settled in Pigeon Hill on Aurora's northeast side and worked primarily in the Burlington train shops. They formed St. Joseph's Church in 1899.

Luxemburger Hall built by the American Luxemburger Independent Club in 1917 still stands at 416 High St., Aurora, although it now often hosts Hispanic celebrations that reflect the changing neighborhood.

“It is the last Luxembourger clubhouse left in the United States,” Wester said.

The industrious Luxembourgers started many businesses including ones still existing today, with the best known probably being Oberweis Dairy.

“That's a very Luxembourgish name. There's a place in Luxembourg called Oberweis,” Jaros said.

Other notable Luxembourgish names include Dr. Bernard Cigrand, the founder of Flag Day, who had a dental office in Aurora. A reproduction of the office is part of Early Streets exhibit at Blackberry Farm in Aurora. Dennis Hastert, former speaker of U.S. House of Representatives, attended the exhibit's opening and is involved in Luxembourg heritage events.

“He actually was born in Aurora,” Jaros said. “His ancestors were Luxembourgers.”

The exhibit also names tennis player Chris Evert as a famous person of Luxembourgish descent, though she has no connection to Aurora, Jaros said.

Great migration

Luxembourgers coming to Aurora were part of a much larger migration. A landlocked country bordered by Belgium, France and Germany, Luxembourg saw 72,000 of its citizens leave for the New World in the 1800s, Wester said.

“That was over a quarter of the population,” he said.

Of those immigrants, 45,000 settled in Chicago, particularly on the north side. They became known as “the glass house people” because of their involvement with truck farming and the greenhouse industry.

“Chicago is an epicenter of Luxembourg heritage,” Wester said.

The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, a constitutional monarchy, has devoted efforts and funding to maintain the country's ties with its American cousins. Luxembourg's population of just over 500,000 now includes a high percentage of immigrants from Portugal and Eastern Europe.

“There are more people in the United States that have Luxembourgish blood than in the country of Luxembourg,” Wester said.

Luxembourg feels a particularly strong affinity to the United States because Americans liberated the country after Hitler tried to turn it into a German state during World War II, Wester said.

The government of Luxembourg supported the founding of the Luxembourg American Cultural Society in 2004 to preserve Luxembourgish heritage in the United States and foster ongoing relationships between the two countries. Headquartered in Belgium, Wisconsin, the society serves as Luxembourg's cultural office in the United States and is a sponsor of the migration exhibit.

After making its debut on Ellis Island in 2007, the exhibit is making its first stop in Illinois and will travel to Skokie next, Wester said. The display covers everything from the reasons for the Luxembourgish migration (largely economic), the trip across the Atlantic and Luxembourgish settlements in the United States to information about modern Luxembourg.

“It's 36 panels. They deal with all aspects of what is Luxembourg, where is Luxembourg, what's its history,” Jaros said.

When Aurora residents Dolores Kellen and Barb Edwards heard about the exhibit, they knew they had to come. Kellen, whose maiden name was Hettinger, said her maternal grandfather, John Hankes, farmed where the Aurora police station now stands.

“We're Luxembourg on both sides of the family,” she said.

Edwards, whose maiden name was Michels, grew up on Pigeon Hill, where her family was involved in the coal and lumber business. Her grandfather, Ben Michels, donated the land for the Christmas display on Lehnertz Ave.

“He wanted to keep Christ in Christmas,” she said.

Former Aurora resident Jim Michels serves on the board of the Luxembourg American Cultural Society. Michels, who visited Luxembourg in 2007, said the country of just under 1,000 square miles is about the size of Kane and Kendall counties put together.

“The countryside is beautiful,” he said. “There are five distinct regions in Luxembourg and each one is a world of its own.”

More to come

Wester said about 135 people attended the exhibit's May opening in Aurora and 125 came to a Luxembourg reunion event in Aurora in March.

“Our organization will be doing more events in the Aurora region,” he said. “We had Luxembourgers in Naperville and DuPage County too.”

Many Chicago area people of Luxembourg descent also attend the Luxembourg Fest and Luxembourg Heritage Weekend each summer in Belgium, Wis., Wester said. This year's event is Aug. 11-14.

But not all people of Luxembourgish descent even know their heritage, Wester said. Since Luxembourgish is primarily a spoken language, Luxembourgers had to read and write German (many now also know French and English).

“We have people contact us every day who thought they were German,” he said.

For details on the Luxembourg American Cultural Society and Center, call (262) 476-5086 or visit luxamculturalsociety.org.

If you go

What: “Luxembourg — USA: A Migration Story” exhibit

When: Noon to 4 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays through July 31

Where: David L. Pierce Art and History Center, 20 E. Downer Place, Aurora

Cost: Free

Info: (630) 906-0650