Mountain Monthly
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ST. JOSEPH'S APACHE MISSION RESTORATION PROJECT
 (Editor's note: This is part one of a two-part series on St. Joseph's Apache Mission.) St. Joseph Apache Mission church sits nestled in the heart of the Sacramento Mountains where it stands as a tribute to the faith, patriotism and courage of the people of southern New Mexico. This inspiring Romanesque church was built to serve the people of the Mescalero Apache Reservation, and has been dedicated as a memorial to veterans who gave their lives in World Wars I and II. Through the years St. Joseph Apache Mission has continued to serve the spiritual and communal needs of the Mescalero Apache and surrounding neighbors. More than twenty years went into the building of St. Joseph Apache Mission. It was mainly the inspiration and work of Father Albert Braun, O.F.M., who first came to Mescalero as a young Franciscan friar in 1916. Soon after he arrived he saw the need for a new church because the old abode structure was too small and in poor condition. His work here in Mescalero was interrupted in 1918 when he went to Europe as an Army Chaplain. When he returned to Mescalero after the war he was determined to build a church like the grand Cathedrals in Europe to serve the Apache people and as a memorial to those who had died in the war. Father Albert received permission to build a church, but was given no funding. Armed with $100 left from his Army pay and a free pass to ride the railroad, he went to Philadelphia to see noted architect, William Stanton. Inspired by the dream of Fr. Albert, Mr. Stanton drew the plans as a gift. In 1920 with a couple of volunteers the foundation, which is seven feet deep in places, was dug and construction was underway. Tony Leyva, a stonemason and friend of Fr. Albert’s from Santa Barbara, Ca. volunteered to come to Mescalero and help Fr. Albert build the Mission. Tony asked only for room and board and to be returned to Santa Barbara to be buried next to his wife upon his death. the construction was done mostly by volunteers, including Fr. Albert and several Franciscan friars. All material used is native to the locality. In the winter, stone was quarried about four miles west of the Mission Bent, NM. The stones were then hauled to the building site in the spring. The lime for the mortar was burned in pits near the Mission. The stones were laid during the summer and fall. The timbers for the ceiling and roof were purchased from a local sawmill. The tiles for the roof and floor came from the old La Luz Pottery Plant in nearby La Luz, NM. The lighting fixtures were designed and made in Jaurez, Mexico. In 1939 the building was considered complete, and a grand dedication ceremony was held on the fourth of July. For many years the windows were boarded up for lack of funds. The present windows were specially designed for the Mission and installed in 1961 by a glass company from El Paso, Texas. The Mission is laid out in the form of a cross. It is 64 feet wide and 131 feet long. It is 50 feet to the rafters, and 80 feet to the roof peak. The tip of the cross on the bell tower is 103 feet high. The bell tower walls are four feet thick at the base. The grave outside of the Mission is where a Franciscan friar, Brother Salesius is buried. He was killed during construction of the mission while trying to unload one of the heavy stones from the truck. The truck crushed his chest and he died two days later. Brother Salesius had been an artillery man for the German Army in World War I. |