St. Labre Indian School completes investigation into historical student deaths

By Pam Ash Independent Staff Writer, Printed courtesy of The Forsyth Independent Press

An investigation by the St. Labre Indian School into its own past recently concluded, finding that while the school's history is not without student deaths, all causes have been recorded and accounted for. The investigation was launched following claims in 2021 about the presence of more than 200 unmarked graves at the Canadian Indian residential school in Kamloops, British Columbia.

To investigate their own history, the Board of Directors at St. Labre in Ashland decided to form an independent commission to address any possibility that a similar situation could have happened at any of the boarding schools operated by St. Labre during the past.

After an 18-month comprehensive investigation, the final report was completed at a cost of $150,000, paid for by the St. Labre Board of Education, and presented at a press conference in Billings on July 23, 2024. According to Curtis Yarlott the records research was extensive, accessing local records, BIA records, individual records in the possession of past administrators, and historical archives. Listening sessions were held in communities most closely related to the boarding schools, and family histories, stories and memories were presented under the promise of confidentiality.

In total, the investigation found 113 documented student deaths occurred between 1884 and 1960, the span of the investigation. The 113 deaths included tribal students - Northern Cheyenne, Crow, Cree - and non-Indian students, with the Crow and Northern Cheyenne children accounting for 90% of the deaths, according to records detailed in the investigation. Research indicated that most of the deaths were due to disease and illness. Ten of the recorded deaths were due to causes other than diseases or illness, including accidents. It is likely that other students died during that period, but the ones identified were recorded in documents that the study was able to access.

School overcrowding, poor sanitation, unreliable access to medical care, and enrolling and keeping sick children at the schools were several factors that contributed to student deaths. As was common in the time period the investigation focused on, infectious diseases took a heavy toll on families, including tuberculosis, influenza, measles, scarlet fever, whooping cough and other infectious diseases.

Though the listening sessions did detail aspects of life at the boarding school that are today frowned upon - such as harsh punishments and compulsory attendance - many families had relatively frequent involvement with their children and sometimes took them home if they became ill, according to the investigative committee. Some recovered and some died among their families and were buried elsewhere.

Among the investigations main findings is that there was no evidence of burials on school grounds other than within current or historical cemetery boundaries. Some grave markers have deteriorated over time, but there was no evidence that there were any instances of intentionally unmarked burials.

The Board formed an independent commission to investigate the potential for unmarked and/or undocumented graves at any of the schools operated by St. Labre, including the main campus at Ashland, Pretty Eagle Catholic Academy at St. Xavier, and the St. Charles Mission School at Pryor. The commission's goal is to obtain a thorough, fact-based, and unbiased review of the history at those locations.

The five-member Commission is independent of the Board and is continuing to review available records and provide public listening sessions at various locations throughout the Crow and Northern Cheyenne Reservations.

The Commission consisted of five members, two of whom are St. Labre Board members who volunteered because of their interest, expertise, and/or connection to the community. The other three members are independent, meaning that neither they nor any immediate family member is a current or former member of the St. Labre Board or related boards, is not a current or former employee of St. Labre or any St. Labre affiliate, and has not received direct or indirect compensation from St. Labre or any St. Labre affiliate within the past five years, apart from Commission-related expense reimbursements and stipends. As the investigation continued, the Commission hired an independent research firm to review documents, records, and local history related to St. Labre.

For those unable to attend, a form was available for submission to Dr. Janine Pease.