Schiller Chapel

From its settlement in 1831 onward, Highland attracted citizens from Switzerland and southern Germany, and some of the more well-to-do early families traveled back to visit their homelands. In the summer of 1875, a group of Highlanders made such a return trip under the leadership of John Suppiger, one of Highland's original settlers. Traveling with him were his wife Catherine, their 20-year-old daughter Adaline, their 7-year-old son John, his nephew Louis G. Suppiger, and Christian Himi, a retired farmer and native of Switzerland. The group went by train to New York City and boarded the steamship Schiller. In bad weather just southwest of England, about 20 miles from England's southern tip, the Schiller struck a rock. Of the 400 people aboard, only 44 survived, and none of the Highland travelers were among them. In 1883-1884, a chapel was built as a memorial to John Suppiger, and after it later fell into disrepair, the Highland Historical Society urged the Highland City Council in 1974 to designate it a historical monument.

Highland, Illinois · United States