A new exhibition at The History Museum and Research Center in Great Falls is opening a window into what historians say is an often forgotten era in central Montana history — the Native American boarding school era.
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"Voices of Our Ancestors: The Records of St. Peter's Mission Boarding School" centers on historic records from the Ursuline Sisters of the Western Province — letters, diaries, ledgers, and photographs preserved with care for more than a century. St. Peter's Mission, located in Cascade County, was Montana's only Catholic, off-reservation Native American boarding school.
"Many people don't know a lot of the stories that happened in Montana," said Ashleigh McCann, collections curator for media and marketing at the History Museum.
The records nearly ended up in Boston. When the Ursuline Sisters determined they could no longer serve as a permanent repository, the original plan was to send the collection to the formal Ursuline provincial archive in Boston — which would have placed them far out of reach for descendants of students who attended the school. History Museum leadership heard about the plan and rallied tribal leaders and historians to make the case for keeping the records in Great Falls. The museum convinced the Sisters — and the Sisters had to convince Rome. The records are now accessible through the Owen and Gayle Robinson Research Center for Tribal Nations at the History Museum.
In 2023, the Ursuline Sisters formally entrusted the collection to the museum as an act of healing, transparency, and trust.
For McCann, the exhibition is about more than history. It is about finally telling stories that have gone untold for too long.
"The purpose of the exhibition is to bring to light, a lot of, you know, what these students went through going to the school, what it was like being enrolled and, you know, the perspective of what, the Ursulines are wanting to do with the children. There's really good intentions with it, but of course, it represents just a huge dramatic shift," she said.
The exhibition was curated by James Grant of the Little Shell Chippewa. The Ursuline Sisters have issued a formal statement acknowledging the harm caused by Native boarding schools and the generational trauma that continues to this day.
"The Ursuline Sisters have long lamented the suffering caused by Native boarding schools and the generational trauma that continues to this day. We acknowledge that racism in our country is real, and we apologize for our part in the harm that colonialism has caused," the Sisters wrote. "We have brought our archival records here to the Cascade County Historical Society to make them available to all, especially the Native Peoples of Montana."
The public is invited to a free opening reception on Friday, Aug. 21 at 6 p.m. in the Ozark Club event room at the History Museum. The evening will include light refreshments, entertainment, and a presentation by curator James Grant.
The History Museum and Research Center is located at 422 Second St. .S in Great Falls. For more information, visit greatfallshistorymuseum.org/ursuline or contact Ashleigh McCann at (406) 452-3462 or collections@greatfallshistorymuseum.org.
