St. Boniface Indian School

St. Boniface Indian School was a Roman Catholic American Indian School in Banning, California.

It belonged to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Monterey-Los Angeles.[1] It opened in 1890, providing vocational education to Cahuilla, Serrano, Luiseño, Kumeyaay, and other American Indians.[2][3]

The school had a forced Americanization program that was to make students follow Euro-American culture. There is a cemetery that has graves of deceased students.[4]

History

It began operations in 1890.[5] Bishop Francisco Mora y Borrell authorized the school and Mother Katharine Drexel provided funding to the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions for purchase of the land, construction, and operations.[6][7] Over its history, about 8,000 students attended the school.[6] Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet provided the teaching staff.[8]

The inspiration for the school's main building was the facility of the St. Joseph's Indian Normal School in Rensselaer, Indiana.[9]

St. Anthony's Industrial School in San Diego in 1907, with students sent to St. Boniface.[8]

Its role as an Indian school ended in 1952. The replacement institution, New Hope USA, was for adjudicated delinquents and students from low income backgrounds.[5]

The building was demolished in 1974.[6] A small abandoned cemetery remains.[10]

See also

References

  • Harley, R. Bruce (1999). "The Founding of St. Boniface Indian School, 1888-1890". Southern California Quarterly. 81 (4). The Historical Society of Southern California: 449–466. doi:10.2307/41171974. JSTOR 41171974.

Notes

  1. ^ Harley, "The Founding of St. Boniface Indian School, 1888-1890," p. 449.
  2. ^ Murkland, Pat (May 10, 2009). "Inside St. Boniface". Ahunika'. Dorothy Ramon Learning Center.
  3. ^ Harley, Bruce (1994). Readings in Diocesan Heritage. Vol. 8, Seek and ye shall find: St. Boniface Indian Industrial School, 1888–1978. San Bernardino, CA: Diocese of San Bernardino. pp. i–137. OCLC 29934736.
  4. ^ "Federal probe of American Indian boarding schools reflects dark chapter in U.S. history". The Mercury News. 2021-07-05. Retrieved 2024-10-04. They were forbidden to speak their language and practice their culture.
  5. ^ a b "Former St. Boniface School under scrutiny after Canadian revelations". Inland Catholic Byte. Roman Catholic Diocese of San Bernardino. Retrieved 2024-10-03.
  6. ^ a b c "The St. Boniface Indian/Industrial School" (PDF). Banning Record Gazette. Banning Public Library. September 9, 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 6, 2014. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
  7. ^ Rathbun, Tanya L. (2006). "6. Hail Mary: The Catholic Experience at St. Boniface Indian School". In Clifford E. Trafzer; Jean A. Keller; Lorene Sisquoc (eds.). Boarding House Blues: Revisiting American Indian Educational Experiences. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 978-0803244467. OCLC 63703921.
  8. ^ a b McNeil, Teresa Baksh (Summer 1988). "St. Anthony's Indian School in San Diego, 1886-1907". The Journal of San Diego History. San Diego Historical Society.
  9. ^ Harley, "The Founding of St. Boniface Indian School, 1888-1890," p. 450.
  10. ^ Holtzclaw, Kenneth M. (2006). Banning. Arcadia Publishing. p. 11. ISBN 978-0738529929.

Further reading

  • Harley, Bruce (1994). Seek and ye shall find: St. Boniface Indian Industrial School, 1888–1978. Readings in Diocesan Heritage. Vol. 8. San Bernardino, Calif.: Diocese of San Bernardino. pp. i–137. OCLC 29934736.