Ste. Marie, Illinois
Encyclopedia
Ste. Marie is a village in Jasper County
Jasper County, Illinois
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, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

, along the Embarras River
Embarras River
The Embarras River is a tributary of the Wabash River in southeastern Illinois in the United States. The waters of the Embarras reach the Gulf of Mexico via the Wabash, Ohio, and Mississippi rivers. The river drains a watershed of approximately in an agricultural region...

. The population was 261 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Ste. Marie is located at 38°55′53"N 88°1′31"W (38.931480, -88.025205).

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the village has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.9 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 261 people, 116 households, and 69 families residing in the village. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 234.7 people per square mile (90.8/km²). There were 122 housing units at an average density of 109.7 per square mile (42.4/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 100.00% White. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.38% of the population.

There were 116 households out of which 22.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.6% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 6.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.5% were non-families. 37.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 28.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the village the population was spread out with 23.8% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 16.1% from 45 to 64, and 29.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 74.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 74.6 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $32,500, and the median income for a family was $37,344. Males had a median income of $24,375 versus $15,833 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the village was $14,479. About 5.6% of families and 6.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including none of those under the age of eighteen and 15.4% of those sixty five or over.

Early History

Early 1800s -- French became greatly concerned and dismayed by the effects on the Church from the French Revolution and the attacks by unbelieving philosophers.

Some French including the Picquets began to consider the possibility of emigrating in order to establish elsewhere a new social order based on the principles of the Gospel.

1835 -- Joseph Picquet (19 years old) was sent to American to "spy out the land" and report back to the family. His father and elders could not afford to be away for such a long time. Joseph was selected because they could depend on his loyalty, wisdom and good sense.

1835 – Joseph lands in New York. Being unfamiliar with the language and customs of this new land, he worked for nine months in a business house in Philadelphia.

Early 1836 -- Joseph begins explorations of the country. His travels took him to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Lima, Ohio; Fort Wayne, Indiana; Indianapolis, Indiana; Vincennes, Indiana; Vandalia, Illinois; and Saint Louis, Missouri.

Instructed to stay away from large cities, he turned eastward and finally decided on the land (now Ste. Marie) of rolling prairie and virgin timber partly because of its proximity to Vincennes, a strong French city and because of the availability of priests to say Mass. At that time there was not a single house between Newton and Olney.

Oct. 1836 -- Joseph returned to France and gave a favorable report of the land.

Jan. 29, 1837 -- An association of five including Jacques Picquet, Joseph Picquet, Joseph Schifferstein, Charles Hoffman and Joseph Picquet was formed with the intent of the organization to be the acquisition and development of land in the United States so that they could build their own estates, free of oppression. A contract was written and signed by the members of the association.

June 20, 1837 -- Joseph returned to the United States with the nucleus of a colony, all related by either blood or marriage, twenty-five in all, on the ship, the Mogul. Because they were all related, the new settlement was to be named Colonie des Freres or Colony of Brothers.

July 20, 1837 -- The new immigrants bought a small farm near St. Francisville where they stayed for several months.

Oct. 1, 1837 -- The settlers left St. Francisville and came to begin their new settlement. They boarded with William Price who had a cabin nearby.

Oct. 12, 1837 -- Ferdinand Hartrich, Etienne Lauer and Joseph Picquet went to Palestine and recorded approximately 12000 acres (48.6 km²) in the Land Office there.

Father Stephen Theodore Badin, a Frenchman came during this time to bless this work of their own hands and celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in their presence. Father Badin was the first priest ordained in the United States. A stone monument fashioned to look like a log cabin stands on the grounds of the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana, as a tribute to him. There is also a mosaic on the east porch of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. in memory of him.

Oct. 28, 1837 -- The settlers gathered on a knoll, just south of the Embarras and with proper pomp and circumstance took formal possession of the land, dedicating the village to the Virgin Mary, who has a privileged understanding of the human and the Divine, unlike any other person. The newly acquired land was called "Colonie des Freres," or Colony of Brothers. Eventually the name of the new settlement was changed to St. Marie with the French version of the spelling changing in 1892 by request of the French settlers.

Joseph Picquet made many more trips back to France to bring other family members to the new colony.

Ste. Marie quickly grew and erected its first church, free school, post office and store. It was the "cultural center" amidst the miles and miles of wilderness.

Modern Ste. Marie

Sainte Marie remains a thriving community.

Churches:
St. Mary's of the Assumption Catholic Church,
Pilgrim Holiness Church;

Organizations:
4-H Club,
Sainte Marie American Legion Post 932,
Ste. Marie Community Club,
Ste. Maire Foundation,
Ste. Maire Home Extension;

Businesses:
The Auction House,
Affordable Computer Solutions,
ASL Solutions,
Don Hartrich Repair,
D.M. Manufacturing,
Family Hair Care - Sandy Hartrich,
The Gas Station,
Hartrich Meats,
Hi Benders,
The Hideout,
Iris House - Annette Lynch,
Josh Tarr Plumbing,
Keller Grain & Livestock,
Kevin Ochs Construction,
Dee Kirpiel Alterations,
Kraus Sawmill,
Mont Eagle Mills,
Mont Eagle Products,
Olde World Reflections,
Parish Plumbing,
Shane's Machine Shop,
Ste. Marie State Bank;

Government/School:
South Eastern Special Education,
Ste. Marie Post Office 62459,
Ste. Marie Elementary;

The current Village President of Ste. Marie is Bill Hartrich.

Quartoseptcentennial

The village of Sainte Marie will hold its Quartoseptcentennial on June 29, 30, & July 1, 2012. The three day celebration will commemorate Sainte Marie's 175th anniversary featuring various events including an Ice Cream Social, Wine Tasting, Beer Garden, Live Music, Fireworks, Bingo, 5K Walk/Run, Parade, Quilt Show, Ste. Marie Style Chicken Dinner, Kids Games, Concessions, Art/Photo Displays, Country Line Dancing, Helen Graham Display, 50/50 Drawing, Antique Car/Tractor Show, Dedication Mass, and much more. The planning committee hopes that the Quartoseptcentennial will be an opportunity for current residents, past resident, and visitors from all over to join in the celebration of this historic Southeatern Illinois community.

External links

Ste. Marie, Illinois 175th Anniversary Quartoseptcentennial

Ste. Marie Foundation
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