Months after purchasing the childhood home of Pope Leo XIV, the village of Dolton has designated it as an official historic landmark.

The Dolton Village Board of Trustees voted unanimously on Monday to approve an ordinance declaring the home at 212 E. 141st Pl. as an official historic landmark and site of special historical significance. The vote will allow the village to seek state funding to preserve and develop the site.

Village officials have said they plan to work with the Chicago Archdiocese to possibly create a museum on the site.

Dolton Mayor Jason House said they hope to have a project completed by Spring 2027.

"This is a moment that will be remembered for generations," House said in a statement. "Dolton is now forever imprinted on the world stage. Preserving Pope Leo XIV's childhood home is not just about honoring history, it's about protecting a symbol of hope, faith, and the extraordinary potential found in everyday American communities."

Born in Chicago as Robert Francis Prevost in 1955, Pope Leo XIV was raised at his family's home in Dolton before beginning his pursuit of the priesthood. He served as an altar boy at St. Mary of the Assumption Church in Chicago while living in Dolton before he moved away in 1969 to attend seminary school in Michigan.

He was ordained as a priest in 1982, and later spent time as a missionary in Peru before returning to the U.S. for  afew years, and then going back to Peru, where he ran an Augustinian seminary.

He became a bishop in Peru in 2014, before Pope Francis made him a cardinal in 2023, overseeing the chruch's selection of new bishops before he was elected pope in May, becoming the first U.S.-born pope.

The village of Dolton purchased his childhood home in July for $375,000, and is also looking to acquire another nearby home, which is vacant, in an effort that Mayor House hopes will revitalize the block where the pope grew up and beyond.

Dolton officials said thousands of visitors have traveled to the pope's childhood home since his election as pontiff.

Village officials said they will now form a committee, task force, or charitable organization to secure donations and other funding to finance preservation and development of the site into a spiritual, tourist, and educational destination.