Page Two
80th Anniversary Edition,
The Oregon Statesman
is
Father Blanchet as Vicar-General of Grea t Territory, ' Laid Basis for That Religion
A
St. Paul Center of Church, Boys' College and Sisters" School in IJarly Territory Days
GatHolics
.Marked
uenee
o
THE early history of the
mid-Willamette valley is
inextricably connected with
the missionary urges of two
I -creat relieious ctouds. Cath-
? olic and Methodist. Each pos-
sessed evangelistic zeal for
1 Christianizing- the natives
I and the settlers. The work of
the missionaries of each or-
der overflowed into the polit-
i ical developments of the day
and had a potent influence on
j the territory's uniting with
the United States.
1 Catholic history in Oreron
and in the Marion county
area pivots about the nam of
. Father Blanchet. Ha It was who
received the first appointment In
1837 as vlcar-general of the then
vast, little known Oregon terri
tory. Taking with him Rev. Father
Modeete Demers as assistant,
Blanchet traversed the 5000
miles, between his original Que
bec pastorate and his new field
of duty, . by canoes, portages,
barges , and" horseback.. The ter
ritory assigned him embraced
375.00 square miles, wa large
ly populated by Indians and only
a fringe of trappers, hunters and
settlers lived In the vast area. 1
French Prairie men I
Ask for Priest
Father, Blanchet's appointment
was hastened by the petitions of
a group of settlers in the district
now known as St. Paul. These
men, retired employees of the
Hudson's Bay company, had set
tled in this new-called French
Prairie district and through Dr.
John McLoughlln, factor for, the
company at Fort Vancouver,
these Champoolck county farm
ers in 1834 and in 1835 sent
word to Bishop Provencher at
Manitoba, Canada, asking for
spiritual - leadership from the
Catholic church. Their prayer
was effectual; Mgr. Provencher
when in eastern Canada ar
ranged for the western transfer
for Blanchet and thus the new
Impetus to Catholicism was giv
en to Oregon.
Father Blanchet's first efforts
were at Fort .Vancouver, . new
Vancouver, Wash. Here be con
ducted a- mission in the winter
of 1838 and into spring of the
x ?
luuuwiDi year. Anxious to ex
tend the Catholic influence, on
December 12, 1838, Father
Blanchet started to Cowlitx. in
southwestern Washington, and
here four days later he held the
urst mass in the house of a Ca
nadian settler and chose a 640
acre site for a mission.
Hudson's Bay Permit
Obtained in 1839
Momentarily the progress of
the Catholic missions effort in
Oregon was stopped by the tem
porary refusal of the Hudson's
Bay company to permit religious
effort In the territory south of
the Columbia river. Tho com
pany ascribed Its protest to the
fact that the area was then ; in
controversy over title between
Great Britaiu and the United
States.
itiancnet s efforts, however,
were not withheld long from the
Willamette valley. Hardly had
the eastern dignitaries reached
Fort Vancouver than Joseph Oer
vais, Etienne Lucier and Pierre
Beleque, a delegation represent
ing Bottlers on French Prairie,
paid the new men a visit and; in
vited them to visit in Oregon.; i
Thus it was that on January
3, 1839, Father Blanchet set out
for the settlement In tho" Willam
ette valley a few miles abe I
Champoeg, near; the prencut
LANDMARKS IN THE SALEM OF YESTERDAY
r
VT. 'B,- BARKER- 0RKTTrjRE .FAC
TORY "LOCATED COMMERCIAL AND
FERRY STREETS WHKRt MAKIO.V
Li.
4J
K M 4 Mat.
MBTTfOrjIST V.PTSSWT. TTT-i-tT
ERECTED 1852. MOVKp IN 1872 TO
GIVJE FIU.CX TO PRESENT BRICK.
. BMHITT HO0SE. SAXEH'S FIRST
JEU OOBJiea OTATK 'ANO HIGH
Lett '
TT. S. GBI8WOU STORE, SOUTH
WEST CORNER STATE AND COMMKR
C1AL STREETS. THE STATESMAN
orrice was on the second floor
OF THIS BU1LDINO, FROM, 1B55TO
1S.- FIRST BRICK IN SALEM ; EN
LARGED TO PRESENT SIZE BEFORE
1882.. nBTXwnr.n'iil nnvp i unnor
SALEM'S FtaST THTATRB OCCUPIED
RKAR OF
' FLOORS.
SECOND
1
AND
THIRD
Right
s'
TOE JOHN D. BOON HOUSE, BUILT
bcv. w Arm in J.KK,. in , 180; - RE-
MODELED BY J. B. I McCLANK. WHO
RAN A STORE IN ONE CORNER. Me
CLANE EXTENDED ATHB PORCHES
UWB IIUttTtl IHIP UI HOUSE.
JUDOE K, P. BOISE BOUGHT THE'
HOUSE IN 1880. BUILT AN ADDITION
ON THE FRONT, NEW PORCH Es AND
CHANGED WIHTMWR AH. isArnpu
SIDE. HOUSE STILL STANDING. 0
EPISCOPAL CBvhum, OLDEST PUB
lio Enii.riK-r iv
USED FOR PARISH
HAI.EU
HOUSE.
STILL
RJglit
V:.:; J: '
T r t
- - J - 1
KENTON'S PHOfOORAPH OAL
I'ERY. FIRST STUDIO IN SALEM; LO
CATED ABOUT S70 STATE STREET.
Lft i t
-hk2ji:ar,M:rs stood cor-
"JI" AND COMMERCIAL
ANE i!.??-- L 8TORE BELOW,
(
OREGON TN8TTTUTE 1 WILLAM
ETTE UNIVERSITY. TWO LOWER
FI.OORR nairn vrxo m.oj 2l?J4lr
rpRMJTORY ON THIRD FLOOR,
of St. Paul. .
The story of this momentous
visit ia related in ' O'Hara's
"Catholic History of Oregon":
"When the vlcar-general ar
rived at Cha&poeg he was pro
vided with a mount and rode to
the .hurcn, which stood at a dis
tance of four miles. The church.
the first erected in Oregon, a
log structure, 30 by 70 - feet, had
been built in 1836, having been
undertaken as soon as the Het-
tlers had received Mgr. Proven
cner s pastoral promising them
missionaries and exhorting them
to the faithful practice of their
religion. Father Blanchet took
possession of a small room be
hind the altar and spcut the aft
ernoon in receiving visits from
the people, whose ardent wishes
had that day been reallsad.
First Mass Held
At St. Paul in 1839
- "The following Jay. January
, the church, the first in the
Pacific northwest, was classed
under the patronage of the Apos
tle 8t. Paul, and Holy Mass, for
the first time in the present
state of Orexon. was celeh
VJn the presence of Canadians,
B . 4 , . f
8 ' ( 1 I
I
I ' ' S If '
If .. . : . . r '' , '
I t ,Vi- - -! ' - J
. . ..a .. ,.', . jl
II; ; u t ' i ,'
- 1
Hm'i mil n ji'.'r-- ;. ,;,; ,iTi, .,
Rgd Schoolhouse,
Slumbers in Big
I rees at Hubbard
HUBBARD. March 27 The
I little red 'school Tioviso that many
years ago stood by the side of
the read on the. present Orlie
Boje farm, no longer echoes to
the Joyous school life of Hubbard
boys and girls but quietly reposes
under the big fir trees on the
George Hovenden farm west of
Hubbard where it does dyty as a
machine shop. The school house,
called ; the Goudy school, was
named In honor of William Cou-
dy..f an Oregon pioneer school '
teacher, and the father W Miss
Mary Goudy who Is now living in
Hubbard where she has spent 7
of the 80 years of ner lifetime.
Miss Goudy says that her fath
er tsught in Hubbard's I first
schoolhouse, a little log building
that was cast aside when th
Goudy schoolhouse was erected.
The j latter schoolhouse 'was fol
lowed by a two-room build in ir
which later was moved back and
a much larger wooden building
erected. Then as Hubbard! rrsw
in size a better school building
was, needed so the present large
brick schoolhouse. that Is dear tn
the heart of Hubbard folk ws
dedicated March 21, 19K. The
building is located not far from
the spot on which was located
Hubbard's first log cabin.
their wives and children. For
four weeks tble ricar general
conducted a ,- mission among
them, instructing all, baptising
the women aid children and
blessing the marriages."
Blanchet took possession of
section of lnd around the
church before he left, confident
that Dr. McLoughlin could se
cure permission for a permanent
mission on the Willamette river
south of the dolumbla. in terri
tory excluded fk-om Catholic mis
sionary work by the first order
of the Hudson's Bay company
This permission
Jt I " w-
tote the vur nt isiq ..ac,
w .vV.r . was vllU tJT .
8t. Paul became-the coniM-. in
me 40 a, of the Catholic educa
tiooal movement in the
territory. Joseph' Larocque. a
cniei trader ' for tii ia
a v u p
nay company, donated 4800 franca
for a school for boys. Work-be
gan In 1842 and the school was
opened In the fall jf 1843. On
the opening dajr, 30 lads, chieriy
sons of farmers, were enrolled.
Sisters Help In
Building Convent
Tb n-ie year a rnnvnt r..
the Sifters of
Notre Dauio was
- DEUX TEMPS CLUB
uituoer f oz baiem's young
men met Friday nlrht at thm m
Odd Fellows hall and organized a
social dancing club. Th object
of the club is to hnM m.
Informal parties, bi-weekly, Sat
urday evenings, from 8 to 12
o'clock. The officers
I Carey F. Martin, president and
C Ij. McKary. secretarv- Tk.
ecutlre committee consists of the
foregoing officers and Sherman
W. j Thompson, Chas. E. Rolen
and Oswald West. Tkt Mm.
clded upon for the organisation
is the Deux Temps club. The
Urst dance will nrohahi. m.tJ
on the evening of Feb. 1st.
oiaiesman, Jan. 19, 1896.
h " ' 'I - -
WAS IT EVER FOUND?
A Large Sum of Money Lost
M. Abrams and Co. 0 Deer Creek
on the Hth inst. lost $14,000 in
gold dust and coin. Mr. Abrams
1 1!J L . . . Dad US IHOTI0V In aatu'l J
vuB uBuuuag pianes, aoing giaz- i C ug upon
lag and patinOng the windows f10!6 he was ridin?. getting
and doors. Nineteen . pupils, of . the muIe 100)1 irieht, and run
ages 1 o 60 years, were In' the l?n8r the Bad(Ue were lost. At
first classes for the school. Father the ,time h SPot off his mule he
DeSmet. a Result, who had com was iust the south side of the
new territory from St. ipoo'h the muIe
completed at St. Paul, the Sls-
to the new territory fm. cv laupooian: the mule was nt daph
Louis, at thje. same time had es- at the .foot of the mountams, and
tabllshed the Jesuit mission of noc 8een aS:am unti taken up at a
St. Francis Javier on a site do- Plac where he had been .accus
nated by thb vicar-general. t tomed to feed, sixteen or eighteen
For five Sears hese edqcaUon- J""" diUnt- They have been
al. missionary enterprises flour- mtn for the money constantly,
ished but afscries of misfortunes bu at 8t dateB had not feuftd it."
terminated the effort. The eold i',-ie'"n, July 29, 1S5G.
rush to f California drained tuJ
population away from St. P.,i and In the absence of their mi in.
1 t . . -
and caused St. Joseph's Collnro
for boys j to? hn n
-Subsequentlj' tue juit mission
locked its dbor and in 185 n
Sisters of I Notre nm
forced , to abandon thir .oht
try-women had esnnn hA -r..
ky; maidens of the Calalpooias.
who raised for them b-lght-eyed
groups of half-breed boys and
girls. The Catholic Father
were here to bless the union and
pre-pioneer fyears is lni.o.rfin.
rj :
An excerijt from, a descrlntin .ae tne "Tes of these youths.
of life on French Prairie ln the , COndU,on the Pe-
w w. one or peace and plenty.
The earliest comers among the
Americans took homes among
them and speak with pleasant
memories, of the quiet, peaceful,
faraway life which the French
ana naif-breed population
rti
iuere was a tlm -,k-
French Prairie was the home
spot or the Pacific northw. t
mose ante-j)loneer days the Ca-
.u.o rrencn. bad made their
nouiea on tho bourn ir,.i
en-
1
joyea.