The Boy Saint: St. Crescent

The outside of Corpus Christi Catholic Church as depicted in a postcard from 1914.

Corpus Christi Catholic Church was once a “shanty,” serving only a few families. After a storm knocked down the original building, Rev. John O’Neil relocated it to the southwestern edge of town. Hoping to create a more permanent presence in the center of town, the present locale and edifice of Corpus Christi Catholic Church was fashioned by Father Joseph Costa. Construction began in May 1884 and was completed in October 1885. The resulting building is an impressive brick structure, constructed in a Victorian Gothic style and boasting a 150-foot spire. Corpus Christi continues to provide a place of worship to hundreds of families in Galesburg today.

Father Eric Bolek (left) and Father Joe Baker (right) stand on either side of the altar to St. Crescent inside Corpus Christi Catholic Church.

The tomb of St. Crescent located on the underside of his altar. His bones have been encased in wax and are visible through lacerations in his forehead and forearm.

St. Crescent was martyred as a child in third-century Rome. His remains were rediscovered in the excavations of St. Cyriacus’ catacombs and given to Blessed Antonio Rosmini, founder of the Rosminians (one of whom being Father Costa). Having recently built Corpus Christi, Father Costa requested the saint be brought to Galesburg, hoping to attract new parishioners. In 1887, Father Costa made the trek from Rome to Galesburg with St. Crescent — with nothing protecting the remains but a glass case. Amazingly, despite traversing the railroad and miraculously avoiding an ill-fated boat ride, St. Crescent made it to Corpus Christi in one piece, where he remains today. Local legend claims that the boy saint’s presence is why Galesburg is protected from tornados (coincidentally, no tornados have struck the town since his arrival). Given the sheer number of churches in Galesburg, it may be unsurprising that the town also hosts one of only ten Catholic saints in the United States. The protection of St. Crescent underlies an unshakable current of strong faith and (perhaps unconscious) indebtedness Galesburg owes to its religious origins.