St. Mary's Catholic Church

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

St. Mary's Catholic Church is the oldest continuously used church in North Dakota. Built in 1884, it is also historically significant for its simple design and connection to the Frenchman the Marquis de Mores, the founder of the Medora, and his family. The Marquis' wife, Medora (for whom the town is named), hired local contractor Peter Book to build the church. It is still active today and was added to the National Register of Historic Places 1977.

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St. Mary's Catholic Church was built in 1884 and is the oldest used church in the state.

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

The Marquis de Mores founded Medora in 1883. He built a meatpacking plant (the ruins of which are located in Chimney Park) where cattle would be processed and shipped to eastern markets. The town grew quickly to around 250 residents in 1884 and the church was built to serve the local Catholic community. The first mass was held in November that year. For a short time it also served as a school. In the coming years, priests from other parishes served the church. This continued until 1919 when one priest began arrived and remained until 1937. The year before, the church was restored. In recent times, thousands of tourists have come to Medora and as a result, mass has been held at the church regularly since the 1980s. It was restored again in 2008.

Sources

"History of the Area Catholic Churches." Tri-Parish Catholic Churches. Accessed August 15, 2020. http://www.triparishnd.org/history.html.

Maddox, Dawn. "St. Mary's Catholic Church." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. December 2, 1977. https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/NRHP/77001017_text.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MedoraND_StMarysChurch.jpg

Additional Information

Tri-Parish Catholic Churches