La Capilla del Gila

This first Catholic Church in central Arizona, built in 1870 by Father Andre Echallier, was called "La Capilla del Gila". In 1883 a larger edifice commemorating the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, was constructed to the west: a convent was added to the original Capilla, which then became a school. After fire destroyed the new church in 1893, the old chapel served worshipers until the third church was dedicated in 1911. All the region's earliest Catholic Churches, including Phoenix and Tempe, were originally missions of this Florence parish.