Old Mission State Park

We headed home on Saturday afternoon on our little get-away trip to the "big city". The trip through parts of Washington, Idaho and Montana was outstandingly beautiful. Everything was in it's fall prime. The kids and I were not really very beautiful however. Tired, antsy, frayed, frusterated... Poor Grandma.

We usually drive by, but this time we stopped. It was a great place to let the kids stretch their legs and it was a great place for me to soak up a little history. Have you figured out from reading this blog that I get excited about history? Well I do and luckily my Mom and my children (so far) share my excitement.

Here we are heading into, and then back out of The Park Museum. No pictures could be taken inside but luckily we could take pictures outside. haha...
First stop was this teepee that depicts the Indian history in the area. This little place is rich with known history...
The Coeur d'Alene Indians called this beautiful country home in the early 19th century...
During the days of steamboat transport, the Mullan Road made it's appearance through this area, connecting Ft. Benton on the Missouri River in Montana, to Ft. Walla Walla on the Columbia River in Washington. Before the days of the Transcontinental Railroad, the Mullan Road was an important link in the chain that connected one side or our Great Nation to the other side. You can read all about it here.

This was particularly fascinating to me since the weekend before we had been in Ft. Benton, Montana! I pointed this out to the kids with great enthusiasm (jumping up and down). I think they were excited about it even though they all looked at me like I was some kinda freak. Sigh...
But they did plenty of running from place to place, coming back to tell Grandma and I something they had seen and off again to go see something else. See, I told you they were excited about history...
Up on the knoll, overlooking this beautiful valley and the Coeur d'Alene River, was an old mission church and house next to it. The original house burned down and this one was rebuilt in 1887.* We enjoyed going inside...
Dining table...

Kitchen...
Milk can and butter churn...

Desk by the window...
Here is the church. It is the oldest standing building in Idaho. It was built in 1842 by Pierre-Jean De Smet and the Coeur d'Alene Indians without using a single nail...*
We went inside but I didn't take any pictures. It was dark and very cold. It was fascinating that they used huckleberry juice to stain the ceiling and they used old painted newspapers to decorate the walls.
Some of the building has been restored but much of it remains as it was built almost 170 years ago...
Later in the 1860's, after the Mullan Road came through, this building served as an important stop for traders, settlers, and miners, taking on the role as a hospitality and supply station. It was also a working port for boats heading up the Coeur d'Alene River.*
Back in the car we headed on down the road for home.

It was an exciting and interesting ending to our little trip. Interesting anyway.

So if you're ever headed over this portion of the Mullan Road (Interstate 90 in modern terms) with antsy kids and frayed nerves, stop and take a deep breath and stretch your legs. And your brain.

It's a good thing to do.

Sincerely,
Alison

*this information comes from Wikipedia