Spalding Mission
Posted by: 
Volcanoguy
N 46° 27.075 W 116° 48.913
11T E 514191 N 5144203
Spalding Mission sign at Nez Perce NHP.
Waymark Code: WMAH6M
Location: Idaho, United States
Date Posted: 01/15/2011
Views: 5
NPS interpretive sign about the Spalding Mission. The sign is located north of the Lapwai Mission Cemetery in the Nez Perce National Historic Park at Spalding. There is also an older plaque on the fence which says “1936 -- Spalding home site and original fireplaces of Rev. henry Harmon Spalding and Eliza Hart Spalding -- Placed by Alice Whitman Chapter D.A.R. 1935”
Marker Name: Spalding Mission
Marker Type: Roadside
Marker Text:
“Yesterday reached this desirable spot, where we expect to dwell the remnant of our earthly pilgrimage. As yet our dwelling is an Indian lodge . . . for there is no preparation for building yet.” -- Diary of Eliza Hart Spalding
Spalding Mission’s physical remains are sparse, but its impact was large and longlasting. Henry and Eliza Spalding were Presbyterian missionaries who came here in 1836 to convert the Nez Perce not just to Christianity but to a new culture.
The floor plan of these original foundations shows evidence of the Spaldings’ attempts to influence the Nez Perce lifeway.
In rooms added to their residence, the Spaldings taught school, boarded students, and operated a printing press that produced hymn books and primers in the Nez Perce language. The Spaldings left in the aftermath of the killings at the Whitman Mission. Henry returned in 1862 to teach at the agency school in Lapwai. Despite his long absence, he had already started some Nez Perce along the path to change.
County: Nez Perce
City: Spalding
Group Responsible for Placement: National Park Service
Marker Number: None
Date Dedicated: Not listed
Web link(s) for additional information: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
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