GUIDE TO CATHOLIC RECORDS ABOUT NATIVE AMERICANS IN THE U.S.
Volume 2: Midwest United States
Minnesota: MN-28

Catholic Church. Diocese of St. Cloud. Chancery
Pastoral Center
305 Seventh Avenue North
St. Cloud, MN 56303 (physical address)
P.O. Box 1248
St. Cloud, MN 56302-0124 (postal address)

Phone: 320-258-7600
Email: See website (Contact Us)

 

History: The Vicariate Apostolate of Northern Minnesota was erected, 1875, from territory in the Diocese of St. Paul, and the Diocese of St. Cloud succeeded Northern Minnesota, 1889. St. Cloud and its predecessors have served the following Native American missions, parishes, and schools in Minnesota and North Dakota:

1848-1870s (no longer Native) (St. Cloud, 1875-1879)

Assumption Church (Métis, Ojibwa), Pembina, North Dakota

1853-1870s (no longer Native) (St. Cloud, 1875-1879)

St. Joseph Church (Ojibwa), St. Joseph’s, North Dakota

1865-present (St. Cloud, 1875-1889)

Holy Rosary Mission (Ojibwa), Grand Portage, Minnesota

1873-present (St. Cloud, 1875-1889)

St. Benedict's Church (Ojibwa), White Earth, Minnesota

1874-present (St. Cloud, 1875-1879)

Seven Dolors/ Our Lady of Sorrows Church (Santee, Sisseton, Wahpeton), Fort Totten, North Dakota

1877-1879, 1882-1897 (closed)

St. Paul Industrial School (Ojibwa), Clontarf, Minnesota

1879-present (St. Cloud, 1879-1889)

St. Mary Mission (Ojibwa), Red Lake, Minnesota

1880-present (St. Cloud, 1880-1889)

Holy Family Church (Ojibwa), Cloquet, Minnesota

1884-1896 (closed)

St. Benedict Industrial School (Ojibwa), St. Joseph, Minnesota

1885-1896 (closed)

Indian Industrial School (Ojibwa), Morris, Minnesota

1885-1896 (closed)

St. John Industrial School (Ojibwa), Collegeville, Minnesota

1885-1898 (closed)

St. Mary Academy (Ojibwa), Graceville, Minnesota

1944-present

Little Flower Mission (Ojibwa), Onamia/ Vineland, Minnesota

 

Holdings of Catholic records about Native Americans:

Inclusive dates: 1852-ongoing

Volume: At least .4 cubic foot

Description: 5 series include Native Catholic records:

 

/1 Parish Files

Inclusive dates: 1941, 1954-ongoing

Volume: At least 2 folders

Description: Correspondence arranged alphabetically by parish location, "Vineland (Onamia), Minnesota, Little Flower Mission": major correspondents include Sister Laura Hesch, O.S.B. [Benedictine Sisters], Rev. Justin Weger, Rev. William J. Straka, Bishop Peter W. Bartholome and Bishop George H. Speltz.

 

/2 Bishops' Files

Inclusive dates: 1884-1889 

Volume: 1 volume (368 pages) 

Description: Contains Bishop Rupert Seidenbusch's (1830-1895) letterpress book of outgoing correspondence with references to Native mission and schools. According to Robert F. Karolevitz in Bishop Martin Marty, "The Black Robe Lean Chief," ca. 1980, most of the papers of Bishop Martin Marty, O.S.B. [Benedictines] were burned by his housekeeper upon his death in 1896. 

 

/3 Diocesan Chronicle 

Inclusive dates: 1889-1950

Volume: 1 volume (313 pages) 

Description: Pertains to Native missions and schools, in part. 

 

/4 Financial and Statistical Reports 

Inclusive dates: 1955-ongoing 

Volume: 1 folder

Description: Contains annual reports for Little Flower Mission, Vineland (Onamia), Minnesota.

 

/5 Sacramental Records

Inclusive dates: 1852-1879, 1882-1887 

Volume: At least 3 volumes

Description:

A. Belle Prairie, Minnesota, Holy Family Church, and its missions and stations

1. Baptisms, 1865-1879, and confirmations, 1868, 1 volume; created by Rev. Joseph Buh and Rev. Ignatius Tomazin

2. Marriages, 1865-1878; first communions, 1882-1887; and Scapular of Mount Carmel, 1882-1884, 1 volume; created by Rev. Joseph Buh

B. Crow Wing, Minnesota, St. Francis Xavier Church, and its missions and stations: Baptisms and marriages, 1852-1870, 1 volume, created by Rev. Francis Pierz

C. Vineland (Onamia), Minnesota, Little Flower Mission, unknown

 

Unless otherwise noted, the repository on this page holds (or held) the records described here and they are not held at the Marquette University Archives.

new1984/rev2003-2020