Spanish Corporal Juan Ballesteros and five men came to the site of Mission San Juan Bautista (“Saint John the Baptist”) in the late spring of 1797. In a month they had erected a chapel, houses for themselves and the padres, …
On July 25, 1797, Mission San Miguel Arcángel was founded in a fine valley near the juncture of the Salinas and Nacimiento Rivers. The spot was chosen, also, because it could be a stopping place halfway between the San Luis …
Mission San Fernando Rey de España was founded on September 8, 1797. The padres sought a location for another mission to relieve the long journey between Mission San Gabriel and Mission San Buenaventura. The most desirable spot was already claimed …
Although the last mission to be founded in the south, Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, also known as the “King of the Missions”, came to be the largest and richest of all. A great quadrangle was 500 feet on …
Mission Santa Inés Virgen y Mártir was founded on September 17, 1804, by the Franciscan Father Estévan Tapís. Located in rolling hills which provide one of the loveliest settings of any mission, Santa Inés has been called the “Hidden Gem …
For many years Mission San Rafael was all but forgotten. San Raphael’s Church, preserving at least the name of the mission in English, stood on the approximate site. Finally a chapel, built to resemble existing pictures of the old mission …
Discouraged by declining opportunity at Dolores, a zealous young padre named José Altimira founded Mission San Francisco de Solano, at Sonoma, on July 4, 1823, without the knowledge of his superiors. He was encouraged by the governor, who wanted a …