Bothwell Chapel, McKendree University

Constructed from 1856 to 1858, this brick chapel which includes a tall wooden spire is home to Bothwell Chapel on the McKendree University campus in Lebanon. The chapel was documented in the 1930s by the Historic American Buildings Survey and its bell is thought to be one of the oldest in the U.S., being made in Spain in the eighth century. The chapel was renamed the Marion Bothwell Chapel in 1958 to honor a donor who contributed funds used for the building's restoration. Miss Bothwell's father and uncle attended McKendree College during the Civil War.

McKendree University was founded in 1828 as the Lebanon Seminary and the private university is the oldest college or university in Illinois. McKendree also is the oldest university in the U.S. with a continuous relationship to the Methodist Church. The first principal of the Seminary was Edward Ames. The school's name was changed to McKendree College in 1830 to honor Bishop William McKendree, who donated 480 acres to the school.

The architect and builder of the chapel are not known. The two-story chapel stands on a stone foundation with red brick walls, lintels, frieze, and pediment; the entrance, cornice, and spire are wooden. Before the bell in the chapel bell tower was recast in the 1850s, it reportedly included names and dates signifying it had been cast in Spain in the eighth century and recast in the fourteenth century. When the building was documented in 1935 under the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), the interior flooring and trim was white pine, sills were oak, and the roof was tin.

Graduation exercises for the college were first held in the chapel in 1858. The second-floor auditorium is about 45 by 70 feet and was originally heated by two stoves. Some of the original, long wooden benches were still within the chapel in 1935. Steam heat was introduced in 1898 from a new steam heat plant. By 1914, the college's library was on the first floor of the building. In 1935, on top of the 145-foot-tall spire was a gilded globe about three feet wide with a nine-foot-long arrow to serve as a weathervane.

A metal fire escape was salvaged from the old Lebanon grade school in 1938 and added onto the rear of the chapel building. This turned out to be handy for those who were in plays and needed to change costumes; they could use the speech studio downstairs and climb the fire escape to get back to the stage without having to walk through the audience. For many years, the exterior red brick of the chapel, Old Main, and Athleteon/ Science Hall buildings had been painted red. The red paint was removed, and damaged brick and crumbling sandy mortar were replaced. In the late summer and early fall of 1941, the auditorium on the second floor of the chapel was renovated. A ceiling was found to be damaged by a roof leak and was repaired. New wallpaper was installed and the woodwork was repainted. A pipe organ was moved from the northeast corner of the auditorium to a rear room and was repaired. New flooring was installed during this renovation, too. The room's giant velvet curtain was repurposed to use in Eisenmayer gymnasium, where a new stage was built. A new chandelier, modeled on one seen at Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia, was donated for the chapel.

The chapel was in danger of being demolished due to its deteriorating condition by the late 1950s. Marion Bothwell left one million dollars to the college in 1957 to renovate the building. The chapel was renamed Bothwell Chapel in 1958. The foundation was repoured in the 1960s and openings for an extra set of windows which had weakened the structure was closed up. The crumbling interior plaster was repaired. The bell tower and bell had been removed in the 1950s and rebuilt in the 1960s. Steps were built in the new steeple so the historic bell could be viewed, but the bell was not to be rung, to avoid vibrations damaging the building; a recording of the bell was substituted. Famous people who received an LL. D. degree at ceremonies in the chapel include future U.S. President William McKinley and Illinois Governor Charles S. Deneen.

Anonymous. "McKendree College Chorus to Sing at Auditorium." The Theocrat (Zion City) March 16th, 1949. 1-9.

Historic Lebanon, Illinois. Cotacachi Living. U.S. 2013. YouTube video.

Keller, Steve. McKendree College History Committee. McKendree College History 1928-1978. Paducah, KY. Turner Publishing Company, 1996.

Lundeen, Edgar E. McKendree College Chapel, Written Historical and Descriptive Data, Historic American Buildings Survey, HABS IL-228. Bloomington, IN. U.S. Government, HABS District Office, 1936.

McKendree University. Interactive map, Campus Map. January 1st, 2022. Accessed December 20th, 2022. https://www.mckendree.edu/about/visitor/campus-map.php.

McKendree University. Chapel Reservations, McKendree University. January 1st, 2022. Accessed December 26th, 2022. https://www.mckendree.edu/student-life/involvement/campus-ministries/reservations.php.

Sanborn Map Company. Map of Lebanon, St. Clair County, Illinois. New York, NY. Sanborn Map Company, 1914.

Walton, William Clarence. Centennial McKendree College with St. Clair County History. Lebanon, IL. McKendree College, 1928.