Former Mission residential school, last in B.C., to be demolished 2027

Sep 6, 2026 | 8:47 AM

MISSION — The site of B.C.’s last functioning residential school is set to be demolished next year, according to a new announcement.

St. Mary’s Residential School operated for over 120 years across three locations in Mission. The final site, now known as Pekw’xe:yles, moved to Fraser River Heritage Park and was used from 1961 to 1984 – making it the last operational residential school in the province.

Stó:lō Nation Chiefs Council also launched an investigation into missing children and potential unmarked graves on the grounds in 2021.

“For more than a century, Indigenous children were removed from their families and placed in institutions like St. Mary’s, where they were forbidden to speak their language, practice their culture, or live within their community,” said the Stó:lō Collective. “These buildings represent a system that caused deep and lasting harm.”

The group maintains that the planned demolition is not meant to be an erasure of history.

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In 2005, the site had been formally designated as reserve land overseen by the Stó:lō Service Agency, though the group did not have authority to choose what would happen to the land. The group may now have some agency to do so following the demolition.

“With protocols in place, Stó:lō Collective is preparing the land for future use guided by our communities’ priorities,” said the group. “What comes next will be shaped by the twenty-one Stó:lō communities who share this land.”

The building itself has had a range of uses from daycare centres to regional programs over the past two decades. However, the Stó:lō Collective says that the structures are deteriorating, with some containing hazardous materials.

Cultural protocols will be followed before demolition. An exact demolition date has yet to be announced.

Anyone who attended St. Mary’s and would like updates is asked to contact Kaylee Bonnar at kaylee.bonnar@stolonation.bc.ca.

by Alyssa Conti

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Former Mission residential school, last in B.C., to be demolished 2027

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