St. Ignatius Mission, Catholic mission church in St. Ignatius, Montana, United States.
St. Ignatius Mission is a Catholic church in St. Ignatius, Montana, built between 1891 and 1893 as a simplified vernacular Gothic Revival structure of brick made from native clay. It measures 120 by 60 feet in plan, and its belfry rises nearly 100 feet. The interior holds 58 murals painted by Brother Joseph Carignano, an untrained artist who worked as the mission cook.
The mission was founded in 1854 by Jesuit priests Pierre-Jean De Smet and Adrian Hoecken to serve the Salish people. The current brick building that stands today was constructed between 1891 and 1893, replacing earlier structures at the site.
The interior walls and ceiling display 58 murals painted by Brother Joseph Carignano, merging Catholic religious imagery with elements from Salish tribal traditions. These painted scenes tell the story of how two spiritual worlds came together in this sacred space.
The church stands within the town of St. Ignatius, west of Montana Highway 93 and about 47 miles north of Missoula. The interior measures 120 by 60 feet, so allow time to walk the full length of the nave and look up at the murals along the walls and ceiling.
Brother Joseph Carignano, who painted the 58 interior murals, had no formal artistic training: he worked as a cook at the mission. The murals mix Christian imagery with representations of the Salish belief system, a combination found in few other churches.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,780 contributors worldwide.
