History of

St. Francis

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St. Francis Xavier Mission

First mission in the

archdiocese,

established in

December 1838

on Cowlitz Prairie

north of Toledo


139 Spencer Road

Toledo, WA 98591

(360) 864-4126

Fr. Blanchet laid out 640 acres for the mission. A log church was soon erected under the direction of Fr. Demers. He brought a 50-pound bell with him on Oct. 13, 1839, and had it placed in a 40-foot tower. Fr. Demers also laid out the original Mission Cemetery.


The first chapel later became the missionaries' residence. In 1840, a new log chapel, 25 feet by 60 feet, was constructed.


Fr. Blanchet devised a system for teaching religion to the Indians by painting a series of lines and dots, along with other symbols, on a 6-foot parchment, which later became known as the "Catholic Ladder."


In 1864, Fr. Richard started a day school. Then in 1877, under the direction of Fr. Hylebos, a convent and boarding school were built. They were later turned over to the Sisters of Providence.

In 1901, the first of three fires to plague the mission broke out, destroying the church. The resident priest, Fr. Van Holderbeke, later died from injuries suffered during the fire. Fr. Palmer directed reconstruction of the church, then Fr. Flavin had a new rectory built

The Franciscans of the St. Louis Province started ministering at the mission in 1908.  They built or restored parishes from Woodland to Morton. In 1911, they reopened a day and boarding school and the Franciscan Sisters oversaw the operation until it closed in 1973.


A second fire destroyed the mission church and rectory in 1916. The parish built a new church, dedicated in 1917 by Bishop O'Dea. Volunteers also constructed the parish hall in 1923.


On Ash Wednesday in 1932, the mission church once again fell victim to flames. But again the church was rebuilt.


The Franciscan Friars left St. Francis in 1996, after 88 years. The order relinquished three of its five parishes in the Pacific Northwest, primarily because of a shortage of priests.


Since then, the Archdiocese of Seattle has ministered to the historic parish on the Cowlitz Prairie.

The Franciscans left St. Francis Mission in 1996 after nearly 90 years because the order wanted to free its members from pastoral duties and limit the area it serves. Below, teens listen to the bishop during confirmation on May 24, 1963.

Father Francois           Father Modeste

Norbert Blanchet         Demers

Fr. Blanchet celebrated the first Mass on Cowlitz Prairie on Dec. 16, 1838, in the home of Simon Plomondon.

A 25- by 60-foot church was constructed at the Cowlitz Mission in 1840, when a smaller chapel became the missionaries' residence.

The first of three disastrous fires destroyed the mission church and rectory in 1901. A second fire, in 1916, burned the chapel at left.

In 1932, fire destroyed the brick church built after a previous blaze in 1916.

St. Francis Xavier Mission on Cowlitz Prairie near Toledo is the first permanently established mission in the state of Washington.


In response to several appeals, two Catholic priests -- Father Francois Norbert Blanchet and Modeste Demers -- traveled overland from Montreal to the Oregon Country to help fulfill the spiritual needs of Hudson's Bay Co. employees and the early settlers of the area, and to convert Indian tribes to Christianity.


On Sunday, Nov. 25, 1838, Francis Norbert Blanchet celebrated Holy Mass for the first time in the lower Oregon Country at Fort Vancouver.


On Dec. 16, 1838, Fr. Blanchet celebrated Mass in the home of Simon Bonaparte Plomondon, who retired from the Hudson's Bay Co.