• Thursday-What'sUP November 8 - 08:57 pm

This 60 foot high statue of the Snowshoe Priest, photographed here today by Donna MacIntosh, has been standing on the bluff overlooking Keweenaw Bay since 1972...that's 40 years. When I first typed that, I was amazed to think it has been there as a holy shrine for that long, guess that means I'm getting old, since I was in high school when it was erected on this spot. Jack Anderson came up with the design and along with co-sculptor, Art Chaput, they worked for about 3 years to construct it. Then when it was being put in place on the bed of clouds, it somehow caught fire. Mr. Chaput took on the task of completely refinishing the statue, by striping off the old lacquer and then reapplying the fresh lacquer, restoring its beauty once again.

All those years constructing this statue and all that labor were well worth it, since Bishop Baraga still stands here today, so many years later, holding his 7 ft. cross and carrying his 26 feet long snowshoes, watching over the U.P., where he was one of the earliest pioneers of the Keweenaw.

Back in 2008, Charlie produced a Cameo summary of Bishop Baraga's life. It's only 3:02 minutes long and well worth the viewing. You can access it by clicking here: Bishop Frederic Baraga - 1797-1868

Always love a trip up there to visit the priest!! Thanks for sharing!

Have passed by here many a time, but never stopped. I'm always in too much of a hurry to get to the K.

My Grandma and I traveled from Ishpeming to visit the Bishop Baraga Shrine not long after it was built. Thirty plus years later, I drove numerous times to Houghton and back from our home in the LP while our daughter and son were at MTU, and always felt a special presence when passing that statue of the Snowshoe Priest overlooking the road and the bay. Thank you, Grandma. :-)

A 7ft. cross and 26ft snowshoes? That's one humongous statue!
Thanks, Donna, for the interesting photos!

FORTY YEARS????? Wow....I had no idea he's been there that long, and I was in LL when he was being built too...I remember when they trucked him out of town! (and...yes, I took the pics, but I didn't do the math! LOL)

There's nothing like the feeling while walking the grounds up there around the shrine....(Alex, MAKE TIME to stop...at least when you are leaving the K)....the statue is massive...standing underneath and looking up...holy wha man...and reading all the plaques is interesting,and what each teepee support stands for..it's simply amazing...(each support under the statue, represents the five major Indian missions founded by Bishop Baraga.) And the candle hut....that's where you light your candles. The one pictured was lit for the Chevalier family, and I lit another for Jim Dompier. God Bless them all...

And the view of Keweenaw Bay from U.P. there is stunning! And you simply can't breathe fresher air!

I didn't get the chance to go into the Holy Store up there that day, but the Nun that was working there, ran out to get her little dog, cause there are Eagles flying around...and she didn't want her pup to be a snack!

It's a really incredible place to visit. Walk. Inhale. Take the time to smell the Roses.....when you need to soothe your soul...this is one of the MANY places U.P here to do it!

Here is a comment that I added a few years ago to the Bishop Barage statue;;

Thanks for giving world wide attention to our brother Art today. Not only was he the welder but also was the model that dressed in a bishops garbs to get proper perspective and dimensions for the large BARAGA statue.

As always Donna, great pictures! Spiritual.

We saw the Bishop Baraga statue when it was being
built in Lake Linden, laying flat and being
hammered on. Could not believe the size and cannot
believe how many years ago it was. So proud of
this monument for this very special man.

Oh my- I also remember it being constructed and hauled from Lake Linden down to Baraga. It really is an amazing piece of artwork and a great monument to a good man of God.

Charlie's short video about Bishop Baraga is great, and there is a wonderful shot in it of the Shrine from overhead. Thanks, Charlie. :-)

A visit to Hubbell is not complete if I don't see Art Chaput. He still has a grip like a vise. I lived by his parents as a kid and loved his family. Ed you are lucky to come from such a nice family. Your dad had the best garden in Hubbell and was so friendly. Mrs. Chaput would always have a cookie of two for Mike Z. and me. Great memories of growing up in the Keewenaw.

Mikie, those kind of memories are priceless! They always stay put deep in one's heart!

Mary: Thanks for the link to Charlie's cameo on Bishop Baraga and
thanks to Charlie for the cameo itself. What an inspiratonal person
Bishop Baraga was. He's one of my heroes. In fact, I'm wearing my
Bishop Baraga tee shirt in his honor today.

Truly a man of God.