The original Alto Vista Chapel was a primitive church built in 1750 by a half-breed Indian from Alto Vista. It was just a hut made out of branches and wood and covered with twigs.

The Alto Vista chapel was consecrated by a Capuchin priest from Venezuela.  For the Indians it was their own church meant for prayers, without a priest. The cross was brought by a priest from Coro, Venezuela.

In 1781 the area was struck by an outbreak of a contagious disease, called ‘the black fever’. Many Indians died as a result and it caused a migration of the population around Alto Vista towards Noord, where another church had been built, the Saint Anna church.

                        Remains of the original chapel

The chapel fell into disrepair after 1860, but it remained a spiritual site for the Arubians. A cross, flowers and candles were found around the remains of the basement of the original chapel.

In 1952 the new Alto Vista chapel was built, financed by donations from all over the island and from Holland, where a new statue of the Virgin Mary was made.

                    Crowd at the opening of the new chapel

On Good Friday a pilgrimage is made past the 13 major crosses along the road to the chapel.