Father Felix Bucher, S.D.S. Indian Missionary of Grand Ronde, Oregon
Graduation Date
Summer 1963
Document Type
Master's Thesis
Document Form
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Degree Granting Institution
Catholic University of America
Program Name
Humanities
Abstract
Father Felix Bucher, S.D.S., the subject of this study, was brought to the anchor's attention In September, 1937, at Salvatorian Seminary, St. Nazianz, Wisconsin. "The retired Indian missionary from Oregon" — that was his identification as he was pointed out to the new seminarians. But, one could tell from the manner in which faculty members and older students spoke of him that he was no ordinary man. Further acquaintance and investigation gradually revealed the reasons for the reputation and esteem that surrounded him.
The life of Father Felix, as the central topic of an historical essay, was a natural choice; hero was a mail who deserved an audience much larger than he had known while he lived and worked in a small area of the Pacific Northwest. Although his mission world had not been a large one, his work through more than two score years among the Oregon Indians truly marked him as an important figure in the religious development of Oregon. For this reason, it is believed, ihe story of his life will be of interest to many people beyond the confines of his former mission. The fascinating events in his early years in Bavaria and Rome, his assignment to the Oregon missions, his life-long dedication to his "beloved Indians" - the record of all these things will serve to multiply his acquaintances, as well as to preserve his memory among the people of his Mission.
As win be seen in the following pages, the life of Father Felix was bound intimately to the history of Grand Ronde, Oregon. He belonged to Grand Ronde and Grand Rondo belonged to him. His life, therefore, would not be complete Without the background story of the establishment and subsequent development of the Grand Ronde Reservation. At the same time, Father Felix’s missionary labors will be seen in truer perspective after a preliminary sketch of the