Our Lady of Good Hope church in Fort St. James was substantially completed and used at Christmas 1878. At least 40 web sites mistakenly say the church was built in 1873, denying the considerable efforts made by congregates who gathered at Stuart Lake Mission various times of the year. These reunions were largely work camps. It would have been impossible for a church to be built in 1873.
When Fathers J.M.J. Lejacq and Georges Blachet arrived at Stuart Lake in May of 1873, they scoured the countryside searching for a suitable site to establish a permanent mission station. Fr. Lejacq had to find a preemption claim for 320 acres of land. Fr. Blanchet and his volunteer crew set to work building a log residence consisting of a kitchen, two bedrooms, community hall and chapel. As well, a bishop had to travel a great distance to approve the site and ordered a church built, 25 feet by 40 feet. Fr. Lejacq wrote a lengthy report of the founding of the mission, which includes a chronology of the construction that occurred.
This report was published in the March 1880 issue of the Oblate journal "Missions de la cong`egation des missionnaires oblats de Marie immacul'ee."
Lejacq wrote, "Until 1876, all the exercises were held in the Indian church at Nakazdli. Every Sunday I went there to say holy mass. In 1876 the site we had chosen was finally approved and we were ordered to build a church with sanctuary and bell tower. All this work was done by our Indians, under the direction of P. Blanchet."
In June of 1877 the walls of the church were raised and work halted due to a lack of boards' Gavin Hamilton's sawmill was not in operation. In order to have a place large enough for the Christmas 1877 reunion, a catechism house was finished.
In the spring of 1878, Hamilton's sawmill began operation, and work resumed on the church during the June 1878 reunion. Lejacq wrote, " When the reunion ended, the young men followed each other two by two to help P. Blanchet until the roof was raised and the floor installed. Simon and Billy of Fort George, the best workers in all the district, worked with P. Blanchet from All Saints until Christmas under the direction of P. Blanchet, to finished the interior and this gratis pro Deo. We were able to get the boards we need, our two workers will return to finish their work."
William O'Hara
Prince Georg
