|
D'ASTE CHURCH RESTORATION PROJECT by Teri Dinnell Only a dilapidated church remained at the townsite of Dublin Gulch, about eight miles northwest of St. Ignatius, Montana,
when Heritage Project students got involved the D'Aste Women's Club to
see what could be done. In the the early part of this century D'Aste was a
vital The local story maintains that some Irish from Butte, tired of mining and wanting to farm again as they had in the old country, originally settled the area (hence, Dublin Gulch). A fire took out the business district and many homes, leaving the buildings on the north side of the road, which included the church and the school. Water had been hard to bring in to D'Aste in the first place, so instead of starting over there again, most folks went north to Charlo. D'Aste died--except for the church and school, which continued to be used for many more years. The last mass was held in D'Aste in 1978. Twenty years later, a local women's club is raising funds to restore this landmark. Baptisms, mass, weddings, funerals--the events that bring a community together in celebration--were held in that chapel.
The Gallagher family of Charlo, who had owned the church since 1979, gave the building to the Catholic Diocese in Helena. Recently, the diocese gave the building and land it's on to the women's group. For a couple of years research has been taking place to get the church listed on the National Historic Register. That process is nearly completed. The women hope to restore the building for use as a community center, a place for receptions, weddings, reunions, celebrations. They have their work cut out for them.
The little D'Aste Catholic Church now gives the communities in Mission Valley an
opportunity to serve her, as she once served them. For more information on how you can contribute to the restoration
of the D'Aste Catholic Church, contact Delores Woodruff at (406) 644-2885.
|
community, the
site of a school, homes and a business district. Only the Catholic Church, built
in 1916, remains. 
On a mid-summer's
afternoon, Delores Woodruff and Jean Cummings, of the D'Aste Women's Club, met high
school students from St. Ignatius and representatives from the Montana Heritage Project at
the site and discussed their efforts to restore the Church. The ladies described vandalism
(by people and livestock) that had taken place over the past two decades. Once the church
had beautiful stained glass windows, now two or three shards of the glass remain. Cattle
found the carpeted floor more comfortable than frozen earth during the winters, swallows
and pigeons had taken up residence, and a badger called the place home. The beautiful
front doors and the church bell had been stolen. Two of the pews from the chapel now sit
in front of a tavern in Charlo. 
The students identified both barn and cliff swallows (by the shape of their tails)
circling around the church, swooping and rising around the wooden cross--now bereft of paint--on top
of the church. Donovan Dinnell taped the conversations around the church with a video
camera. Students took notes, snapped photos, and listened.