[3] Baraga built the Old St. Joseph Orphanage and School on the site in 1860; wings were added to the building in 1866 and 1877.

[2] After the Civil War, Baraga gave the complex's land and buildings to Chief Assinins and the Keweenaw band of the Chippewa Native Americans.

[2] The complex at Assinins is one of the earliest Catholic missions in the Upper Peninsula associated with Bishop Frederic Baraga, and served as an important link for establishing rapport between the local Ottawa and Chippewa tribes and settlers arriving from the east.

[2] The site at Assinins originally consisted of multiple buildings, including over 15 log cabins, spread over approximately 500 acres (2.0 km2).

[2] The largest structure is the Old St. Joseph Orphanage and School, which stands three stories tall, and is built of rubble with a dormered gable roof.