DescriptionIn response to a request from the Salish for “Black Robes,” in 1841 Jesuit priests Pierre-Jean De Smet, Nicholas Point, and Gregory Mengarini founded the first Catholic mission in what would later become Montana Territory. The original mission was located between the present sites of Fort Owen and Stevensville, in the Bitterroot Valley. The founding date of September 24 coincidentally fell on the day the Catholic Church honors the Blessed Mother, and so the priests named the mission and the nearby river St. Mary’s. They established a school and cultivated the fields. Father Anthony Ravalli arrived in 1845, and, with his help, the priests built grist and flour mills and a sawmill. Relations soured between the priests and the Salish when the priests began to expand their ministry and spread their religion to the Blackfeet. In 1850, John Owen purchased the property from the Jesuits and opened a trading post. In 1854, the Jesuits renewed their missionary efforts by establishing St. Ignatius Mission to serve the Salish and others south of Flathead Lake. In 1866, they returned to the Bitterroot, where Father Joseph Giorda, Father Ravalli, and Brother William Claessens reestablished St. Mary’s in its present location near Stevensville. Father Ravalli, for whom Ravalli County was named in 1893, was an artist, sculptor, physician, pharmacist, architect, and carpenter. He is buried in the small mission cemetery. The mission closed in 1891 when Chief Charlo and the Salish people left the Bitterroot Valley for the Jocko Reservation. Listed in the National Register, the historic mission is maintained by the nonprofit Historic St. Mary’s, Inc. Personal NamesSmet, Pierre-Jean dePoint NicholasMengarini, GregoryRavalli, AnthonyOwen JohnGiorda, JosephClaessens, WilliamCharloOther Name(s)St. Mary's Church and PharmacyContributing InstitutionMontana Historical Society Library and ArchivesGeolocation[1] Elevation3311 ft. CountyRavalli County
