The oldest standing building in Idaho

Coeur d'Alene's Old Mission State Park in Idaho preserves the Mission of the Sacred Heart, also known as the Cataldo Mission. This National Historic Landmark was built between 1850 and 1853 and is the oldest standing building in Idaho. The mission was taken over in 1850 by the Italian Jesuit missionary Antonio Ravalli, who designed the building to be constructed by local Indians so they would feel a personal connection to the church. The structure was built using the wattle and daub method and finished without using any nails.

The mission was named after the Sacred Heart of Jesus. While it is often called the Cataldo Mission due to the fame of Father Joseph Cataldo, the name was a local misnomer. The site served as a rest and supply station for travelers on the Mullan Road and as a working port for boats on the Coeur d'Alene River. In 1976, a major restoration of the church was selected as Idaho State's Bicentennial Project.

Inside the church, the walls were decorated with fabric bought from the Hudson's Bay Company and a hand-painted newspaper from Philadelphia that Fr. Ravalli had received in the mail. Tin cans were used to create chandeliers, and the interior wood is stained with pressed huckleberries. The surrounding state park, established in 1975, includes the parish house, two cemeteries, and a nature trail.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons