Heritage Hill State Historical Park

Roadside Chapel

This Chapel was given to Heritage Hill by the Laluzerne Family of Duvall and was restored to what it was like in the early 1900s. Joseph Derenne, Mrs. Laluzerne’s father, built the Chapel after he was miraculously cured of cancer. Chapels such as this were a common sight near many of the Belgian farms in northeastern Wisconsin. They were probably built for the following reasons:

• It was a tradition brought over from Europe (where they can still be seen).
• They were built to commemorate an answered prayer or perhaps a “miracle” event in the lives of a farm family.

The chapel served as a place for the family to say daily prayers, and even for travelers to stop and say prayers or to say the Rosary. It is another indication of the extreme religious beliefs of the Belgian people.