GUIDE TO CATHOLIC RECORDS ABOUT NATIVE AMERICANS IN THE U.S.
Volume 2: Midwest United States
Minnesota: MN-8

St. Mary’s Church (Deer River) and St. Joseph’s Church (Ball Club)
Parish Office
P.O. Box 98
Deer River, MN 56636

Phone: 218-246-8582
Email: See website

 

History: St. Mary Church, Deer River, Itasca County, and St. St. Joseph Church, Ball Club, Leech Lake Reservation, Minnesota, are two nearby parishes in the Diocese of Duluth (Archives: Duluth, Minnesota) that share staff and resources.

1892-1896	Benedictines (St. John's Abbey) (Archives: Collegeville, Minnesota) at Immaculate Conception, Red Lake, attended to Ball Club station (Ojibwa), Leech Lake Reservation
1896-1906	Benedictines at Holy Family, Cloquet, attended to Ball Club station
1906-1912	Benedictines at Holy Family, Cloquet, established and attended to St. Ann Mission, Ball Club
1912-1926	Benedictines at St. Theodore’s, Ponsford, attended to St. Ann’s
1926-1934	Benedictines at St. Catherine's, Cass Lake, attended to St. Joseph’s/ Ann’s
1934-1980s	Became a parish; Benedictines administered St. Joseph Church
1980s-present	Duluth diocesan priests have administered St. Joseph’s

Benedictines and Duluth diocesan priests at St. Joseph's have administered the following Ojibwa Indian missions and stations on the Leech Lake Reservation:

1934-1938 (closed)	Round Lake station
1934-1940 (closed)	Bowstring station
1934-1940 (closed)	Cut Foot Sioux [Lake] station
1934-1940 (closed)	Lake Winnibigoshish station
1934-present	St. Ann Mission, Bena
1936-1952 (closed)	Inger station
1936-1948 (became a mission)	Squaw Lake station
1948-1962 (transferred to St. Michael's, Northome)	St. Catherine Mission, Squaw Lake
1963-1970s	Sacred Heart Mission, Federal Dam

 

Holdings of Catholic records about Native Americans:

Inclusive dates: 1906-ongoing

Volume: At least 2.5 cubic feet

Description: The records are described by record type, since they were not organized according to a classification scheme when reviewed by a Marquette University archivist, 1980.

 

/1 Sacramental records

Inclusive dates: 1906-ongoing

Volume: At least 7 volumes

Description: For St. Joseph’s Church and its missions and stations.

A. Baptisms, 1906-ongoing; 1906-1934 records are copies from Holy Family, Cloquet; St. Theodore's, Ponsford; and St. Charles', Cass Lake

B. Marriages, 1935-ongoing

C. Deaths, 1936-ongoing

D. First communions, 1947-ongoing

E. Confirmations, 1934-ongoing

 

/2 Subject file

Inclusive dates: 1960s-ongoing

Volume: At least 2 cubic feet

Description: Arranged alphabetically. 

 

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.

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