Belleville Historical Society calendar tradition returns. Here’s where to get one
One of my favorite holiday traditions is the unveiling of the Belleville Historical Society Calendar.
The 2026 edition is now available in area locations and it is beautiful. It contains one of my other favorite things—stained glass.
The calendar is packed with pictures of colorful windows from some of the stately old homes of Belleville, a few churches, a home turned funeral parlor and a bank turned bookstore.
The stunning cover photo, ironically, the one you will probably see the least, is of the stairwell windows of the Charles and Blanche Monk house. All through the calendar, house names refer to the original owners who had the houses built, mostly in the late 19th century but also in the early 20th century.
The large homes were also status symbols when built and frequently featured elaborate stained glass art.
Robert Brunkow, who compiled the history of the homes and their windows, said a board member of the society came up with the idea and everyone is pleased with how it turned out.
There is no theme to which homes were selected. Mostly it was a matter of word of mouth and going to a home, knocking on the door and asking to take pictures, he said.
The calendars are an annual fundraiser for the group, which was founded to promote awareness of the city’s history, culture, architecture and people.
Copies sell for $10 and are available at local merchants, including:
- Artisans Off Main
- Belleville Books
- Blanquart’s Rusty Gem Vintage Market
- Circa Boutique
- Eckert’s Country Store
- Eckert Florist
- Local Lucy’s
- Peace By Piece Boutique
You also can order through PayPal online at bellevillehistoricalsociety.org with a mailing fee of $3.
Brunkow said they have already gotten calls from people wanting their churches featured if there is a similar calendar in the future.
“If it sells well, maybe next year we can do it again,” he said.
