St. Paul Roman Catholic Church in St. Paul, Oregon,

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, was the first church in

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

to be built with bricks when it was constructed in 1846.Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956. p. 215. It is the oldest brick building in the Pacific Northwest. It was listed on the

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in 1979.

Background

In 1836, French Canadian pioneers on the

French Prairie French Prairie is located in Marion County, Oregon, United States, in the Willamette Valley between the Willamette River and the Pudding River, north of Salem. The prairie area roughly corresponds to the traditional land of the Kalapuya peopl ...

in the

Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley ( ) is a valley in Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Willamette River flows the entire length of the valley and is surrounded by mountains on three sides: the Cascade Range to the east, the ...

built a log cabin chapel along the

Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States. Flowing northward ...

near the

Methodist Mission The Methodist Mission was the Methodist Episcopal Church's 19th-century conversion efforts in the Pacific Northwest. Local Indigenous cultures were introduced to western culture and Christianity. Superintendent Jason Lee (missionary), Jason Lee was ...

.Chapman, J. S. (1993). ''French prairie ceramics: the Harriet D. Munnick archaeological collection, circa 1820-1860 : a catalog and Northwest comparative guide''. Anthropology northwest, no. 8. Corvallis, Or: Dept. of Anthropology, Oregon State University. This structure was later moved to St. Paul and served as the church for the community until the current structure was built in 1846. After several requests for a religious leader by the French Canadians in the Willamette Valley beginning in 1834, and a second request in 1836, the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

sent several priests including

François Norbert Blanchet François Norbert Blanchet (September 30, 1795 – June 18, 1883) was a French Canadian-born missionary priest and prelate of the Catholic Church who was instrumental in establishing the Catholic Church presence in the Pacific Northwest. He was ...

Oregon Country Oregon Country was a large region of the Pacific Northwest of North America that was subject to a long Oregon boundary dispute, dispute between the United Kingdom and the United States in the early 19th century. The area, which had been demarcat ...

.Horner, John B. (1919). ''Oregon: Her History, Her Great Men, Her Literature''. The J.K. Gill Co.: Portland. After receiving permission from the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), originally the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England Trading Into Hudson’s Bay, is a Canadian holding company of department stores, and the oldest corporation in North America. It was the owner of the ...

, Blanchet moved south of the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

and gave the first Mass in the Willamette Valley on January 6, 1839.Blanchet, Francis Norbert, and Edward J. Kowrach. Historical sketches of the Catholic Church in Oregon. Fairfield, Wash.: Ye Galleon Press, 1983, p. 80 While preaching to the Catholic community at that church, Blanchet lived behind the altar. On December 11, 1843,

Pope Gregory XVI Pope Gregory XVI (; ; born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari; 18 September 1765 – 1 June 1846) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1831 to his death in June 1846. He had adopted the name Mauro upon enteri ...

created an apostolic vicarate out of Oregon with Blanchet as the archbishop.

New building

After the original log structure burned down, parishioners decided to replace the old church with a brick structure.St Paul Catholic Church-St. Paul Oregon
/ref> On May 24, 1846, the cornerstone was laid on the new red-brick building. Upon completion, Blanchet dedicated the new church building on November 1, 1846.

References

External links

Parish information
from St. Paul Parochial School
"St. Paul Catholic Church, Marion County"
from the

Oregon Historical Society The Oregon Historical Society (OHS) is an organization that encourages and promotes the study and understanding of the history of the State of Oregon, within the broader context of U.S. history. Incorporated in 1898, the Society collects, pres ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Paul Roman Catholic Church, St. Paul, Oregon Roman Catholic churches completed in 1846 19th-century Episcopal church buildings Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon Roman Catholic churches in Oregon National Register of Historic Places in Marion County, Oregon Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Oregon Churches in Marion County, Oregon 1836 establishments in Oregon Country 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States

Background

New building

See also

References

External links