Parish History
Lac Ste Anne was the first permanent Catholic mission in Alberta. It was founded by a diocesan priest Fr. Jean-Baptiste Thibault in 1842. He blessed the lake and renamed it Lac Ste Anne, which was previously called "Manito Sakahigan" or "Spirit Lake" by the Cree people. Aboriginal people camped on the west end of the lake which became the pilgrimage grounds considered sacred for generations and widely known as a place of healing. It came to be known as "Devils Lake" by Hudson's Bay Company traders.