St. Mary's Mission Convent and Residential School records
- MS-3541
- Series
- 1869-1984
Series consists of records related to the Sisters’ work at St. Mary’s Mission residential school and their religious life at the associated convent.
In the 1860s, the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) sought to establish a school on Stó:lō land - what is currently Mission - with the aim of providing religious instruction and education for Indigenous children in the area. The OMI called on the Sisters of St. Ann to staff the newly established school. The Sisters accepted and sent two initial teachers to the school in November 1868. From the onset, the OMI oversaw the administrative functions of the school, while the Sisters were focused on the student’s education.
Initial enrollment saw Indigenous students from the local communities as well as students with mixed heritage and orphans. This changed in in the 1890s when federally funded Indian Industrial Schools were mandated to restrict education to Indigenous students only. Funding from the federal government was consistently lacking, particularly after the 1920 amendment to the Indian Act reinforced compulsory attendance for Indigenous children, which led to overcrowded buildings, as well as inadequate food and clothing for students. Agricultural activities at the school supplemented the food stores, and farming became part of the curriculum.
The Sisters closed the convent in 1968, though three Sisters stayed on as employees of the federal government, and staff continued a presence there until 1972. The OMI withdrew from the school in 1973, after which it was run by the federal government until 1984.
The Sisters primarily retained convent records from St. Mary's Mission, as the administration of the school was primarily seen to by the OMI and the federal government. The chronicles and visitation records, while intended to document the religious lives of the Sisters working in missions, often provide insight into the school and students, sometimes referring to children by name. In 1923 a fire destroyed a storage facility at St. Mary’s, and as such there is a twenty-year gap in documentation related to academic development.
This series is comprised of two subseries: A. Convent subseries; B. Residential School subseries.
The Convent subseries consists of a monograph and history of the school, correspondence, local council minutes, financial records, and official visitations. The Residential School subseries consists of a report book, class record sheer, a student list from 1960, a yearbook, review of play, advisory board minutes and material related to a 1980 reunion. This subseries also includes 782 photographs.