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Notes for Using this List:
● The Tribal Nations impacted are listed as they appear in historical documents and may not reflect the names used by the Nations today.
● An asterisk next to the name of a religious community means that the community has verified the dates as accurate.
● This list was last updated on May 5, 2023
St. Peter Mission School
Details:
Dates of Operation: 1884–1918
Current Diocese: Great Falls-Billings
Previous Diocese Involved:
Helena, 1884–1904
Religious Orders who worked at the Parish / School:
Jesuits (West Province), 1884–1898 (see notes)*
Ursuline Sisters of the Roman Union (Western Province), 1884–1918*
On a Reservation: Blackfeet Reservation
On the Department of the Interior List: Yes
Tribal Nations Impacted (as listed in historical documents):
Assiniboine; Blackfeet; Cheyenne; Choteaux; Cree; Flathead; Gros Ventres; Iroquois; Ojibwe; Piegan; Snake
Notes: In 1884, the Jesuits staffed the boys’ school, and the Ursulines staffed the girls’ school. By 1896, there were four boarding schools at the mission: a school for white boys, a school for white girls, a school for Native American boys, and a school for Native American girls. In 1896, the Jesuits closed both boys’ schools and withdrew from the mission two years later. After their departure, the Ursulines opened a boys’ school and continued to teach there until about 1908 (a fire destroyed the Jesuit building, possibly the location of the boys’ school). In 1912, the sisters opened Mount Angela Ursuline Academy in Great Falls, and the white students transferred there. In 1918, another fire destroyed buildings at the mission, and the Ursulines closed the school and withdrew from the area.
Note about dates: According to the Jesuits’ “U.S. locations of boarding schools for Native students administered by the Jesuits,” St. Peter’s Mission was closed in 1918, but letters from the Ursuline sisters serving at the school state that the Jesuits withdrew from St. Peter’s in 1898.
St. Peter Montana
St. Regis Indian Seminary
Details:
Dates of Operation: 1824–1831
Current Diocese: St. Louis
Previous Diocese Involved:
New Orleans, 1824–1826
Religious Orders who worked at the Parish / School:
Jesuits (Central & Southern Province), 1824–1831*
On a Reservation: No
On the Department of the Interior List: Yes
Tribal Nations Impacted (as listed in historical documents):
Fox; Iowa; Osage; Sac
Florissant Missouri
St. Scholastica Indian Boarding School
Details:
Dates of Operation: 1878–1923
Current Diocese: Bismarck
Previous Dioceses Involved:
Vicariate Apostolic of Nebraska, 1878–1879
Vicariate Apostolic of Dakota, 1879–1889
Jamestown, 1889–1897
Fargo, 1897–1909
Religious Orders who worked at the Parish / School:
Order of St. Benedict (Saint Meinrad Abbey, St. Meinrad, IN), 1878–1884
Order of St. Benedict (Conception Abbey, Conception, MO), 1884–1923*
Sisters of St. Benedict (Ferdinand, IN), 1878–1881*
Benedictine Sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery (Yankton, SD), 1881–1923*
On a Reservation: Standing Rock Reservation
On the Department of the Interior List: No
Tribal Nations Impacted (as listed in historical documents):
Sioux
Fort Yates North Dakota
St. Stephen’s Indian School
Details:
Dates of Operation: 1888–present [2023] (see notes)
Current Diocese: Cheyenne
Religious Orders who worked at the Parish / School:
Jesuits (Central & Southern Province), 1888–1975*
Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, 1888–1890*
Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia, Kansas, 1891–1892*
Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia, 1892–1985*
Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, 1974–1989*
Sisters of St. Joseph of Baden, 1974–1976*
On a Reservation: Wind River Reservation
On the Department of the Interior List: Yes
Tribal Nations Impacted (as listed in historical documents):
Eastern Shoshoni; Northern Arapaho
Notes: In 1976, the St. Stephens Indian School Education Association was formed to take over the management of the school. At that time, the school became a U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs contract school. Catholic sisters continued to teach at the school until 1985.
Note about School Archives: Records from St. Stephen’s Mission are housed at Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI. For more information: https://www.marquette.edu/library/archives/Mss/SSM/SSM-sc.php
Saint Stephens Wyoming
St. Turibius Mission School
Details:
Dates of Operation: 1900–1910 (see notes)
Current Diocese: Santa Rosa
Previous Diocese Involved:
San Francisco
Religious Orders who worked at the Parish / School:
Order of Friars Minor (Province of the Sacred Heart), 1900–1910
On a Reservation: No
On the Department of the Interior List: Yes
Tribal Nations Impacted (as listed in historical documents):
Pomo; Wappo; Yuki
Notes: The exact dates the school was in operation are not clear based on available resources, which give different dates for the school’s establishment, the earliest being 1888. Records from the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions, located at Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI, indicate that the school operated as a boarding and/or day school from 1900 to 1910. It is not known if the school continued to operate after 1910.
Kelseyville California
St. Xavier Mission School
Details:
Dates of Operation: 1887–present [2023]
Current Diocese: Great Falls-Billings
Previous Diocese Involved:
Helena, 1887–1904
Religious Orders who worked at the Parish / School:
Jesuits (West Province), 1887–1921 and 1935–1965*
Capuchin Franciscans (Province of St. Joseph), 1965–present [2023]*
Ursuline Sisters of the Roman Union (Western Province), 1887–1921*
Sisters of St. Francis (Oldenburg, IN), 1935–1998*
On a Reservation: Crow Reservation
On the Department of the Interior List: Yes
Tribal Nations Impacted (as listed in historical documents):
Cree; Crow
Notes: The boarding school closed when the Ursulines withdrew from the mission in 1921. According to the Official Catholic Directory, the school continued to operate as a day school with lay teachers until the Sisters of St. Francis (Oldenburg, IN) arrived to reopen the boarding school in 1935. The boarding school closed again in 1976. About that same time, it became a private Catholic school and was renamed Pretty Eagle Catholic Academy. Today [2023], the St. Labre Indian School Educational Association consists of the following schools: St. Labre elementary, middle, and high schools in Ashland, Montana; Pretty Eagle Catholic School in St. Xavier, Montana; and St. Charles Mission School in Pryor, Montana.
St. Xavier Montana
Tekakwitha Indian Mission Orphanage
Details:
Dates of Operation: 1938–1986
Current Diocese: Sioux Falls
Religious Orders who worked at the Parish / School:
Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (United States Province), 1938–1986*
Sisters of the Divine Savior, 1938–1973*
On a Reservation: Lake Traverse Reservation
On the Department of the Interior List: No
Tribal Nations Impacted (as listed in historical documents):
Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate
Notes: The school was known by several names, including Tekakwitha Indian Orphanage, Tekakwitha Sioux Indian Orphanage, Tekakwitha Catholic Indian Orphanage, Tekakwitha Catholic Sioux Indian Orphanage, Tekakwitha Children’s Home, and Tekakwitha Home. The Central United States province of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate staffed the orphanage.
Sisseton South Dakota
Villa Ursula
Details:
Dates of Operation: 1924–1972
Current Diocese: Helena
Religious Orders who worked at the Parish / School:
Ursuline Sisters of the Roman Union (Western Province), 1924–1972*
Jesuits (West Province), 1924–1972*
On a Reservation: Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation
On the Department of the Interior List: No
Tribal Nations Impacted (as listed in historical documents):
Blackfoot; Cheyenne; Coeur d’Alene; Colville; Cree; Flathead; Gros Ventre; Iroquois; Kalispel; Kootenai; Nez Perce; Ojibwe; Piegan; Salish; Snake; Spokane; Umatilla; Upper Pend d’Oreilles
Notes: The Ursulines arrived at St. Xavier in 1890 and opened a kindergarten. In 1898, the Ursulines moved to a new location on the mission property and opened their own school, possibly a continuation of the kindergarten. In 1919, a fire destroyed the Sisters of Providence school at the mission, and they decided not to rebuild. The Ursulines took over the operation of the girls’ boarding and day schools. In 1922, the Ursuline convent and school were destroyed by fire, and Villa Ursula was built in its place. In 1941, the Jesuits closed their school, and all children attended Villa Ursula. The boarding school closed in 1962, and in 1972 the school closed, and the land was returned to the tribe. See the entries for St. Ignatius, Holy Family School, and St. Ignatius, St. Ignatius Indian Boarding School for more information.
St. Ignatius Montana