SigMT

SiG MT 57 Amadeus arrived aer a train ride from Miles City and a 75-mile stagecoach trip from Helena. ey were given the crude cabins that had been abandoned by the priests. Shortly aer, the school for girls was opened with several resident girls and 11 Blackfeet students. e three small cabins served as living quarters for the nuns and the Indian girls and doubled as classrooms. In addition to teaching, the nuns had duties; cooking, cleaning, doing laundry and raising food. Mother Amadeus became ill with pneumonia in spring 1885. Her illness prompted a request for help from the order's headquarters in Toledo, Ohio. Mother Stanislaus accompanied by Mother Amadeus' old family friend, Mary Fields, traveled to Montana. Mary had heard about her friend's illness, came to Montana, and never le. A large black woman, she grew up a slave until emancipation. Aer Mother Amadeus recovered, Mary was determined to do her part and stayed at the mission. She did laundry and other chores, raised up to 400 chickens, hauled supplies from Cascade, and assisted with construction projects. She also quickly gained a reputation for her drinking, cigar smoking, and questionable language. In 1895, gossip that put Mary in a bad light reached the Bishop, and he ordered that she vacate the mission. She kept her tie to the mission by winning the job delivering the mail by buggy. is job earned her the title, "Stagecoach Mary." She became legendary at the mission and later in the Cascade area. e Jesuits began constructing the four-story boys' school and aached a three-story priests' residence in 1887. A year later the cornerstone was laid for Mount Angela girls' school. e large stone building contained classrooms, kitchen, laundry and living quarters for the nuns and up to 200 children. Both stone buildings were completed by 1892. On January 1 Bishop Brondel from Helena said the first Mass in the Mount Angela Chapel. In addition to several white boys and girls, 216 Indian students resided at St. Peter's that year. e opera house was completed in 1896 and contained an auditorium and stage. It can still be seen north of the mission road and serves as a livestock barn. is dilapidated building still shows remnants of the dormitory rooms, the auditorium, and an old basketball court. At its pinnacle, the mission had a capacity for 400 students, served as the Northwest Mother House for the Ursuline Nuns and was a seminary for the Jesuits. Two large stone buildings housed the boys' and girls' schools and served as dormitories. Other buildings included the church, cabins, ranch buildings, and the large opera house. Boy's school and priests' housing about 1885. Mount Angela girls' school about 1885. Church and original cabins about 1885. Procession from the old church to Mount Angela.

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