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ACKNO WLEDGMENT

To Mr. Wa tkins for use of photograph of Mission San Jose,
taken before the earthquake of 1868, and another of the
corridor of Mission San Luis Obispo.

To Mr. William J. Miller for full description of Mission
San Rafael, now extinct.

The outlines of Santa Clara Mission were obtained from a
daguerreotype taken about 1855, The outlines of the Santa
Cruz Mission, now extinct, are taken from an old painting
by L. TOUSSET.

P2^

THE TWENTY-ONE

MISSIONS OF CALIFORNIA

REPRODUCTIONS FROM PAINTINGS

EDWIN DEAKIN

FIFTH EDITION

BERKELEY

1902

BOOKS AT 3100 TELEGRAPH AVENUE, BERKELEY

BOI-TO.N <K STRONG, PHOTO-l-.NCRAVKRS E. F

EDWIN DEAKIN

THE LIBRARY --
BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY
PROVO, UTAH

MURDOCK PRESS, S. F.

INTRODUCTION

The reproductions contained in this volume represent the original twenty-one Missions of
Alta California established by the Franciscan Fathers, the first one being San Diego, founded
by Junipero Serra, President of these Missions. Many of them are at the present day in a
good state of preservation, others are fast going to ruin, and three are entirely gone, which
fact is greatly regretted by the people of the State — who prize these historic relics more year
by year — and by visitors to the Coast, to whom the Missions are objects of great interest and
admiration.

Study for the pictures, from which these reproductions are made, was begun in 1870,
sketches and studies of the Mission Dolores being made in that year, of San Buenaventura
and Santa Ines in 1875, and of those that still exist at different times between the years 1870
and 1899. Of the three Missions that are wholly destroyed, careful studies of the sites have
been made.

IN DEX

i. SAN DIEGO DE ALCALA ....

2. SAN LUIS, REY DE FRANCIA .

3. SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO ....

4. SAN GABRIEL ARCANGEL ....

5. SAN FERNANDO, REY DE ESPANA

6. SAN BUENAVENTURA

7. SANTA BARBARA

S. SANTA INES

9. LA PURISIMA CONCEPCION .

10. SAN LUIS OBISPO DE TOLOSA .

11. SAN MIGUEL

12. SAN ANTONIO DE PADUA ....

13. NUESTRA SESORA DE LA SOLEDAD .

14. SAN CARLOS BORROMEO DEL CARMELO

15. SAN JUAN BAUTISTA ....

16. SANTA CRUZ

17. SANTA CLARA

iS. SAN JOSE

19. SAN FRANCISCO DE ASIS

20. SAN RAFAEL ARCANGEL ....

21. SAN FRANCISCO DE SOLANO

FOUNDERS

JUNIPERO SERRA July 16, 1769

Lasuen, Santiago, Peyri, June 13, 1798

Serra, Amurrio November 1, 1776

Cambon, Somera September S, 1771 /

Lasuen, Dumetz September S, 1797

Cambon, Serra March 31, 17S2

Lasuen, Paterna, Or am as December 4, 17S6

Calzada, Gutierrez September 17, 1804

Lasuen December 8, 17S7

Serra ......... -? September 1, 1772

Lasuen, Sitjar ....... July 25, 1797

Serra . July 14, 1771 /

Lasuen, Sitjar, Garcia ..... October 9, 1791

Serra, Crespi ........ December, 1771 /

Lasuen, Catala, Martiarena .... June 24, 1797

Salazar, Lopez ........ September 25, 1791

Tom as ......... January 12, 1777

Lasuen June 11, 1797

Palou, Cambon, Nocedal, Pena . . . October 9, 1776

Durran, Abella, Sarria December 14, 181 7

Altimira April 4, 1823

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IN order to familiarize one's self with the Missions of California it becomes necessary to
recall a few facts in Spanish history preceding their foundation. A number of years
before any move had been made to Christianize Alta California the Jesuits had established
seventeen Missions, extending from the extreme southern cape over the entire peninsula of Lower
California. Spain herself was rent by a continual struggle between Church and State, royal
disfavor being particularly strong toward the Jesuits. Affairs finally culminated in a decree of
the government expelling every member of the Jesuit order from whatever establishment within
Spanish possessions. This was in 1767.

In contrast to the royal attitude towards the Jesuits, the Franciscans were in favor, and
the Lower California Missions, which otherwise would have been left desolate, were given
into the hands of the Franciscan friars. Chiefest among these Fathers who came was Junipero
Serra, a veritable Caesar in the realm of faith. For years before leaving Spain Father Junipero
had cherished a dream of giving his life in the service of the more distant tribes of Alta California,
and at length the aims of politicians combined to bring this about. An expedition was organ-
ized, part to go by sea and part by land, with Father Junipero as President. The two parties,
after much suffering and the enduring of many hardships, were reunited on the shore of San
Diego Bay, and in a most picturesque assembly dedicated the ground for the Mission San Diego de
Alcala, July 16, 1769. Six years later it became necessary to move the Mission about five miles up
the valley, and it is this ruin of the second building which still exists, voiceless, yet eloquent
of its heroic past. There is little remaining of the ruin except the faqade of the church and
a few walls that will not long endure. To the artistic eye, it is most satisfactory in color,
rich in tan, yellow, brown, and red, unchallenged by the whitewasher's brush. It is built
mostly of burnt tile, which with stone and adobe furnished the materials for all the Missions.
Opposite the church is an olive-orchard, planted by the Padres and still in bearing.

The original plan of the Padres was to have the Missions about a day's journey apart; and
they will be spoken of according to their geographical situation, beginning in the south.

The Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, founded June 13, 1798, is about forty miles north of
San Diego. San Luis was the most extensive, and became in name the " King of Missions." It is a
beautiful structure, mostly in Spanish-Moorish style, with tower and open belfry on one side of the
church, and long lines of arches, now in ruins, that formed the adjoining inclosure. The entire build-
ing formed a quadrilateral four hundred and fifty feet square. The huge timbers used in its erection
were brought from the Canon of the Pines, about twenty miles away. They were blessed, placed on
the shoulders of Indians, and carried until one relay wearied, then shifted to another, with-
out being allowed to touch ground until they reached the consecrated spot. In the construction
they were held in place by thongs of rawhide. San Luis gained its prominence and reached
its great prosperity through the efforts of Father Peyri, whose noble traits are still held in
grateful remembrance by a few Indians in the locality. Numerically it exceeded any Mission,
having in 1826 two thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine natives enrolled. In 1896, after
its long sleep, San Luis awoke as a Franciscan college, under the leadership of the well-known
Father O'Keefe. The daily religious exercise of the novitiates in the church is very interesting.

San Juan Capistrano, founded November 1, 1776, is next in our northern road. It stands
about two miles from the shore, with a line of hills for a background. The church was of stone,
with walls about five feet thick. Its destruction came on the day of the Feast of the Immaculate
Conception (1812), while mass was being said. Between thirty and forty persons were killed and
many more injured. In wandering through the ruined building and the remaining arches about
the courtyard, one pictures again the life as it was — a veritable hive of industry. Each day, gov-
erned by a routine, began with the matin-bell and ended with the evening sports. The men were
taught all departments of husbandry, and the women to spin, sew, and cook. Children were

gathered into schools. To those who showed talent the arts were taught, especially music and
carving. Frequently they excelled in the latter. Many of the figures of Saints in the churches
were their handiwork, these often being executed with a grace and dignity truly marvelous.

San Gabriel Arcangel, founded in 1771, is one of the best known of the Missions, on account
of its nearness to Los Angeles and Pasadena. It is still in good preservation, and has an individu-
ality that is interesting. The walls are buttressed and the extension of one at the rear forms a pic-
turesque belfry. It is said that the San Gabriel Indians were quite superior to the neighboring
tribes. Their word for God meant " Giver of Life." They knew the points of the compass, and
called the North Star by the musical name of " Runi." They were evidently a people of artistic traits
and far more refinement than one looks for among the redmen. It was customary for them to
wear garlands of flowers, and musical fiestas and contests occupied a portion of their time.
Among them, as with ourselves, it was a rudeness for one to pass between two people con-
versing. Perhaps many a visitor to San Gabriel has not found food on which to
nourish his imagination ; but let him take the drive from Pasadena some winter morning. The
way leads between the orange groves. To the east the blue mountains quiver under shafts
of golden light. The perfume-laden air, stretches of green fields, and the rich notes of a
meadow-lark conspire to pour through every sense the intoxication of enjoyment. A rest under
the pepper-trees near the Mission will bring the charms of a foreign life before him. There
are still growing a quaint old cactus hedge and ancient vines and pomegranates. A Mexican
boy in wide sombrero disappears at the rear of the Mission, to be visible again through the
arches where hang the bells which he rings. A woman across the road lifts her eyes from
the drawn-work with which she is busy and smiles a welcome. A little child in red, whose
hair is as black as night, flashes over the way, and is silhouetted against the grim Mission walls.
From the quaint old hotel comes the twang of a guitar. Our wayfarer lies under a spell
from which neither time nor distance may release him. 9

Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana dates from the year 1797. It stands a mile or so back
from the little town of San Fernando in a vast grain country. The few buildings still remaining
in a habitable condition are used by the ranch hands, who cultivate the earth to their very doors.
One room is reserved as a chapel, and thither a priest comes occasionally to say mass. In the dry
season bands of horses crop the stubble and wend their way at will among the rows of arches.
During the days of prosperity immense tracts were under cultivation, and here as elsewhere the
Padres were owners of vast flocks and herds. In the large garden were two elaborate fountains,
which still remain. It was here at San Fernando that the papers of capitulation to Fremont were
signed when the United States took formal possession of California.

San Buenaventura, founded in 1782, is in the heart of the busy American town of Ven-
tura. A street-car passes the door, and all of the Mission buildings, with the exception of the
church, have given place to the mart. The church has been restored and the roof shingled. For-
tunately, however, the original lines of the building have been preserved, and the bells in the
tower are still in use. In its modern surroundings, however, much of the charm is lost.

Mission Santa Barbara, twenty-one miles northwest of San Buenaventura, is possibly the
best known of all the Missions, and was for years the only one belonging to the Franciscan order.
The first building was destroyed by the earthquake of 181 2, and the present structure, begun in
181 5, was dedicated in 1820. It is built of stone, with walls nearly six feet thick, and the roof is
tiled. Two towers rise from the front, in one of which hang the bells. A long arched corridor,
also tiled, stretches out on the western side. A charming old garden can be looked into from the
tower. A passage part way up this same tower leads into a strange old library, but neither
into that nor the garden may a woman penetrate. The town of Santa Barbara has not, as yet,
crept close enough about the Mission to seem obtrusive. Above rise the Santa Inez Mountains
in throbbing blue at mid-day, or pink and purple in the evening light. In the landscape the

white towers and red roof rise against the hillside like some brooding spirit, and to view them
thus is to feel them an eternal benediction.

In a commanding site, at the head of a beautiful warm valley, forty miles across the moun-
tains from Santa Barbara, stands the Mission of Santa Inez. It is little known, as until lately it
could be reached only after a long stage-ride. Forests clothe the heights on one side, and on the
other stretches a meadowland. The Mission is a plain building with facade wall for belfry and
shingled roof. Adjoining is the usual long low building with colonnade. Only ten arches remain.
The interior is plain and white, but the heavy timbers overhead attract one's attention from the
fact that they are carved in almost the identical patterns of those at San Fernando.

Eighteen miles northwest of Santa Inez lies the almost unknown Purisima. There are the
old and new Purisima, but so far gone are they that they offer little to the student of the past.
Old Purisima was destroyed in 1812, and the Padres, instead of rebuilding on the same site, crossed
the river and moved about five miles farther on. The second building was destroyed in an Indian
revolt in 1824, and the present ruin is the one which took its place.

San Luis Obispo was one of the Missions founded by Father Junipero, but here the Mission
period has been almost completely obliterated. Boarded walls and shingled roofs have taken the
place of the real Mission architecture. It was here that the first Mission tile was made, and the
Padre under whose guidance they were formed came to be known as the " Tile Padre." The
church is that of a thriving parish, but to the seeker after the picturesque it can offer little but
disappointment.

San Miguel retains its original character to a marked degree. It stands facing the Salinas
River, and overlooks the valley for many miles. The church, which is plain, and the customary
building adjoining, are in quite good preservation. Here the long line of arches is varied by
making them of different widths. The bells are on a framework, which is here a feature of the

Mission. The interior of the church is interesting, having been decorated in colors by the Indians,
and remaining to-day as it was originally. The ruined walls stretching about show what a large
patio, garden, and bull-ring they must have inclosed.

Mission San Antonio de Padua, the third Mission founded by Junipero Serra, off the
beaten road of travel, is little known, though it was one of the finest in its day. The country for
miles about is like a tree-dotted park, hardly to be excelled in quiet beauty. Santa Lucia, the
highest peak in the range, rises a purple-clad sentinel guarding the ruin as it did the Mission in
days of prosperity. Here the color is brilliant because of the plaster coating having been put on
so thinly as to leave the tile color visible through it. It was one of the richest in its day, and
embraced seven large farms, each with its own chapel. It became famous for producing the
best wheat and flour. Each year the Padres erected a dam twenty miles up the river, and from this
water supply irrigated the land for miles about. All that remains is fast going to decay.

Nuestra Senora de la Soledad (1791) was never one of the large or rich Missions. The
building is too far destroyed for one to trace much of its original plan. Here, as at several of the
other Missions, the tale still clings of a faithful friar, who, upon the secularization of the Mis-
sions, refused to leave his charge. Here he had labored for thirty years, and here he remained,
sharing his every morsel with the Indians. One Sunday morning, as he was saying mass for
them, he fell forward in a faint and never recovered, having literally died of starvation.

San Carlos Borromeo del Carmelo, or as it is familiarly known, Carmel, if not the most
imposing, was the most beautiful of all the Missions. It was built of a creamy stone. A Moorish
tower formed the belfry, to which a quaint outside stairway led. There were charming little win-
dows of various shapes, particularly a star-shaped one over the front door. Before its restoration
it possessed an almost inexpressible harmony, but that has unfortunately been marred by replac-
ing the low tiled roof by a steep one of shingles. Within, with the exception of the side walls, it

is almost a new church. This was the President's own charge, and here the mighty Serra lived
and labored when not summoned by his duty to other Missions. Here he was buried. At his
death the Indians were inconsolable. For years he had guided them, not only from the pulpit,
but as he worked beside them in the fields, making tiles, or as inspirer in whatever task he
required of them. To him they gave their unbounded affection. Through the years of privations
and hardship, illness and physical pain, the fire of his passion for saving souls burned on. Who
among us can say he labored in vain ?

San Juan Bautista stands facing the plaza in a quiet Mexican town. The Mission build-
ings at one time surrounded the plaza. The church has been robbed of its beauty by the building
of a wooden tower with spire (the latter now blown down), wholly out of keeping with the
original plan, but the long massively arched corridor remains as it was in the day of the friars.
However the mind of to-day may disapprove of the methods used by the Padres in erecting their
buildings, such bits as this corridor must appeal to the mind that thinks, the heart that feels. Every
tile in the roof, stained and moss-grown though it be, seems to retain some of the sensitiveness
from the hands that gave it shape, and the arches in their simple beauty bespeak for to-day's
handiwork a truth and integrity that shall equal their own. Here is a charming garden, growing
roses, vines, and palms. A sun-dial still tells the hour, and beyond in the picturesque cemetery
more than four thousand Mexicans and Indians lie sleeping beyond the call of time. Within the
sacristy are chests containing gorgeous vestments, rich brocades, and gold laces. Originally the
Mission had a chime of nine bells. Only one of them now remains. The baptismal font, carved
from a single piece of sandstone, is the one used by the Padres.

All that remains of the Mission Santa Cruz, built in 1794, is a small section of wall. The
present Catholic church is built upon the site of the old Mission.

The Santa Clara Mission is in a good state of preservation, though much altered in resto-
ration. It is used as a parish church, and the building adjoining is used in connection with a Jesuit
college. The original frescoes over the altar are still bright, and the altar-rail is made from one of
the original timbers taken from the roof. In the garden some fine old grape-vines still bear fruit.
Across the road from the church stands the original cross placed by the Padres. It has been pro-
tected by a wooden covering into which a pane of glass is inserted.

Twelve miles from Santa Clara is Mission San Jose, which was always a poor Mission.
To-day there remains but a small part of the original building (used for storage of wine) and
the fine old olive orchard.

Mission Dolores (San Francisco de Asis). Of the many original buildings of this Mis-
sion nothing but the church remains, and this is so overtopped by an ugly modern church as to
fill one with regret.

For more than twenty years there has been no trace of Mission San Rafael. It was built
too late to attain importance ; as was also Mission San Francisco de Solano. The church build-
ing of the latter is now used as a storehouse.

The secularization came in 1834, and from that time only confusion remained as the portion
of those whom we may truly say "fought the fight and kept the faith."

THE MISSIONS

SAN DIEGO

SAN LUIS KEY

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO

SAN GABRIEL

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SAN FERNANDO

SAN BUENAVENTURA

SANTA BARBARA

SANTA INES

PUR1SIMA

SAN LUIS OBISPO

SAN MIGUEL

SAN ANTONIO

SOLEDAD

CARMEL (SAN CARLOS)

SAN JUAN BAUTISTA

SANTA CRUZ

SANTA CLARA

SAN JOSE

DOLORES (SAN FRANCISCO )

SAN RAFAEL

SOLANO

so fleet the works of men
Back to the earth again,
Ancient and holy things
Fade like a dream."

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Full text of "The twenty-one missions of California : reproductions from paintings"

See other formats