california missions at san miguel, san antonio and
soledad
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San Miguel Arcángel
Sixteenth
Mission Founded:
July
25, 1797 by Father Fermin Lasuen Named for: Saint Michael the Archangel
Location:
on old U.S. Highway 101, 8 miles north of the city of Paso Robles
The third mission founded
by Father Lasuen in the summer of 1797 was quickly filled with the many
friendly Native Americans in the area. Fifteen native children were baptized
on the same day the mission was founded. Accompanying the padres were many
neophyte (Christianized Native Americans) families from other missions that
helped to quickly win the confidence of the local natives.
For many years the padres
kept the natives busy making and drying large amounts of adobe bricks to
be used in a new large church. When the stockpile of adobe bricks was large
enough construction began and was completed in just two years.
Although the exterior
of the church was simple, the interior was elaborately adorned by an artist
from Spain. Fortunately, this artwork has been preserved in its original
form. Scenes show false balconies and pillars, archways, and imitation marble.
Above the alter is the "all-seeing eye of God" with rays of light shining
in all directions.
The neophytes were so
content here that even when, in 1831, in anticipation of secularization,
they were told that they were now free to leave the mission, none did. They
all chose to stay with the padres. A few years later, in August 1834, the
mission was secularized and all the property was given to the Native Americans.
But without the guidance of the padres, the mission soon fell into disrepair.
By 1844 most of the neophytes had left and all of the livestock was gone.
In 1846 all the mission
property, except the church, was sold into private hands. One of the purchasers
was William Reed, who along with his family and servants, lived in the mission
until they were all murdered by a band of tramps looking for gold to steal.
The tramps were all later caught and executed.
When the church was
finally put back into service, in 1878, some restoration was begun. In 1928
it was returned to the Franciscan's to be used as a monastery and a parish
church.
San Antonio de
Padua
Third Mission
Founded: July 14, 1771 by Father Junipero Serra
Named for: Saint Anthony
Location: 5
miles northwest of the community of Jolon in Monterey County
He was not disappointed.
Just a few days after their arrival, sensing the kindness and good intentions
of the strangers, large numbers of natives arrived to meet them. They accepted
the gifts of beads and cloth from the padres and in return provided their
own gifts of seeds and acorns harvested in the area.
In 1773 the mission
was moved to a site further north in the Los Robles Valley that offered
a better water supply. The San Antonio River, about three miles above
the mission, was dammed and long aqueducts brought the water to the mission
where is was stored in reservoirs. The water was used to turn the first
California gristmill, where wheat was ground into flour. Much of this early
water system, along with the gristmill, are still there today.
Due to its remote location,
the San Antonio Mission was badly plundered after its secularization in
1834. The mission was completely abandoned for almost 50 years, between
1882 and 1928. Restoration here was a formidable task, but seen as one of
the largest and most picturesque of all the missions remaining in northern
California, San Antonio was selected by the newly formed California Historic
Landmarks League as one of their first projects in 1903.
A further restoration
of all the mission buildings was funded by the Hearst Foundation and the
Franciscans of California in 1948. The mission is now an accurate replica
of the original mission as it stood in 1813. Parts of the compound are today
used by the Franciscans, but most of the grounds are available to the public
for viewing.
Nuestra Señora de la
Soledad
Thirteenth Mission
Founded: October 9, 1791 by Father Fermin Lasuen
Named for: Our Lady
of Solitude
Location: in the Salinas
River valley, 3 miles south of the town of Soledad and 1 mile west of U.S.
Highway 101
The name of this mission tells a lot about it. Father Lasuen dedicated the site to "the Solitude of Most Holy Mary, Our Lady".
It was a dry, windy plain that was very hot in the summer and freezing cold
on winter nights. It was through the missionaries irrigation of the
Salinas river that the area was transformed
to allow the growth of crops and livestock herding by the missionaries.
Due to the inhospitable
climate and land, there were very few Native Americans living in the area.
Hence building and conversions were slow. It was six years before a large
church was finally built. And since the desolate plain offered no protection
against the floods of the Salinas river, the church was twice destroyed
by the overflowing river banks. During a reconstruction in 1832 a third
flood hit that was latter seen as the beginning of the end for the Mission
Soledad.
It was also a very difficult
assignment for the padres. Those sent there soon complained of rheumatism
and poor health. After a year, many padres asked to be reassigned to a more
pleasant site. In the short span of this mission's existence, almost thirty
different padres were assigned here.
In spite of all the
difficulties, the mission did prosper. Eventually the padres performed more
than 2,000 baptisms and 700 marriages. The crops were bountiful and large
herds of horses, cattle and sheep grazed the plains.
After secularization
the mission site was soon abandoned and left to decay for over one hundred
years. Finally, in 1954, the Native Daughters of the Golden West began restoring
what little was left of the Mission Soledad. Today a small wing of seven
rooms and a small chapel can be visited. Although the original quadrangle
is gone, the lines of it can be traced in the mounds of the adobe ruins.
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