Year 1887 - Salesian Mission

Monseñor Fagnano

The Anglican missionaries, who civilized the Fuegian natives of the Beagle Channel, remained in that area for many years, until very few examples of that aboriginal race remained.

Later, Catholic missionaries from the Salesian Congregation arrived, working mainly in Tierra del Fuego and in the city of Punta Arenas and neighbouring towns. The first Salesians arrived in Magallanes in 1887, led by José Fagnano Vero, who would later become the Apostolic Vicar.

Fagnano had previously been in Argentina and, as an Army chaplain, he visited Tierra del Fuego, where he participated in an exploration trip led by Commander Ramón Lista. The military had contact with the natives and a battle took place in which 28 natives were killed. Fagnano reproached the military chief for this useless massacre and made a firm resolve to protect the Indians.

To this end, he managed to get the religious authorities to send him to the south, with the mission of founding a chapel and a school, to begin his missionary work.

The first years of the Salesians in Magallanes were extremely hard. In Punta Arenas they found an adverse and hostile environment. But they persevered and carried out their missionary work with zeal, until they triumphed. Fagnano and four religious, plus some nuns of the Daughters of Mary, founded a church, the Colegio San José, and later the missions of San Rafael on Dawson Island and La Candelaria, in Rio Grande, Argentina.

Foto Isla Dawson Aborigenes Selknam u Onas

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In Dawson, five hundred Ona (Selknam) and Aoniken (Alacaluf) Indians were gathered. Fagnano fought hard to maintain them and to this end he created livestock and industrial activities, putting into operation a sawmill that supplied Punta Arenas.

The Salesian work extended to the cities of Porvenir and Natales, and was expanded in Punta Arenas with more schools, churches, a museum and a meteorological observatory. The Indians civilized in the missions had the same fate as the natives of the Beagle Channel in their contact with civilization.

Monsignor Fagnano died in Santiago in 1916. His remains rest in the Cathedral Church.

** Check out the latest from the Children's Music Band of Dawson Island, in their presentation in Punta Arenas, unfortunately with the tragic ending... Here YouTube https://youtu.be/LasrpL8bFMA

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