St. Francis Xavier Mission
Encyclopedia
The mission of St. Francis Xavier was a seventeenth century Jesuit mission located on the rapids of the Fox River
near De Pere, Wisconsin
.
It was founded in 1671 by Claude Allouez to proselytize the native peoples of the western Great Lakes. In 1684 a chapel measuring 70'x40' and seating six-hundred was completed under the direction of Father Verboort to serve an expanding Catholic population. The mission was used as a base of operations by Nicolas Perrot
in his explorations of the Upper Midwest in the 1680s. In 1686 he made a present of a silver ostensorium to the mission which was rediscovered by workmen digging a foundation in 1802. In 1687 the mission of St. Francis Xavier was destroyed in an Iroquois attack.
Fox River (Wisconsin)
The Fox River is a river in eastern and central Wisconsin in the United States. Along the banks is a chain of cities, including Oshkosh, Neenah, Menasha, Appleton, Little Chute, Kimberly, Combined Locks, and Kaukauna. Except for Oshkosh, these cities refer to themselves as the Fox Cities...
near De Pere, Wisconsin
De Pere, Wisconsin
De Pere is a city located in Brown County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 20,559 at the 2000 census. De Pere is a suburb of Green Bay and is part of the Green Bay Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Registered historic places:...
.
It was founded in 1671 by Claude Allouez to proselytize the native peoples of the western Great Lakes. In 1684 a chapel measuring 70'x40' and seating six-hundred was completed under the direction of Father Verboort to serve an expanding Catholic population. The mission was used as a base of operations by Nicolas Perrot
Nicolas Perrot
Nicolas Perrot , explorer, diplomat, and fur trader, was one of the first white men in the upper Mississippi Valley. Born in France, he came to New France around 1660 with Jesuits and had the opportunity to visit Indian tribes and learn their languages...
in his explorations of the Upper Midwest in the 1680s. In 1686 he made a present of a silver ostensorium to the mission which was rediscovered by workmen digging a foundation in 1802. In 1687 the mission of St. Francis Xavier was destroyed in an Iroquois attack.