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Dedication
Dedication
To those good men and women, of all creeds and of no creed, whose lives have shown forth the glories of beautiful, helpful, unselfish, sympathetic humanity: To those whose love and life are larger than all creeds and who discern the manifestation of God in all men: To those who are urging forward the day when profession will give place to endeavor, and, in the real life of a genuine brotherhood of man, and true recognition of the All-Fatherhood of God, all men, in spite of their diversities, sha
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Foreword
Foreword
The story of the Old Missions of California is perennially new. The interest in the ancient and dilapidated buildings and their history increases with each year. To-day a thousand visit them where ten saw them twenty years ago, and twenty years hence, hundreds of thousands will stand in their sacred precincts, and unconsciously absorb beautiful and unselfish lessons of life as they hear some part of their history recited. It is well that this is so. A materially inclined nation needs to save eve
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CHAPTER I
CHAPTER I
In the popular mind there is a misapprehension that is as deep-seated as it is ill-founded. It is that the California Missions are the only Missions (except one or two in Arizona and a few in Texas) and that they are the oldest in the country. This is entirely an error. A look at a few dates and historic facts will soon correct this mistake. Cortés had conquered Mexico; Pizarro was conqueror in Peru; Balboa had discovered the South Sea (the Pacific Ocean) and all Spain was aflame with gold-lust.
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CHAPTER II
CHAPTER II
Rightly to understand the history of the Missions of the California of the United States, it is imperative that the connection or relationship that exists between their history and that of the Missions of Lower California (Mexico) be clearly understood. As I have already shown, the Jesuit padres founded fourteen Missions in Lower California, which they conducted with greater or less success until 1767, when the infamous Order of Expulsion of Carlos III of Spain drove them into exile. It had alwa
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CHAPTER III
CHAPTER III
San Diego Mission founded, Serra was impatient to have work begun elsewhere. Urging the governor to go north immediately, he rejoiced when Portolá, Crespí, Rivera, and Pages started, with a band of soldiers and natives. They set out gaily, gladly. They were sure of a speedy journey to the Bay of Monterey, discovered by Cabrillo, and seen again and charted by Vizcaino, where they were to establish the second Mission. EASTER SUNRISE SERVICE, 1913, UNDER SERRA CROSS, MT. RUBIDOUX, RIVERSIDE, CALIF.
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CHAPTER IV
CHAPTER IV
AT Padre Serra's death Fermin Francisco Lasuen was chosen to be his successor as padre-presidente. At the time of his appointment he was the priest in charge at San Diego. He was elected by the directorate of the Franciscan College of San Fernando, in the City of Mexico, February 6, 1785, and on March 13, 1787, the Sacred Congregation at Rome confirmed his appointment, according to him the same right of confirmation which Serra had exercised. In five years this Father confirmed no less than ten
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CHAPTER V
CHAPTER V
Estevan Tapis now became president of the Missions, and under his direction was founded the nineteenth Mission, that of Santa Inés, virgin and martyr. Tapis himself conducted the ceremonies, preaching a sermon to a large congregation, including Commandant Carrillo, on September 17, 1804. With Lasuen, the Mission work of California reached its maximum power. Under his immediate successors it began to decline. Doubtless the fact that the original chain was completed was an influence in the decreas
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CHAPTER VI
CHAPTER VI
It is generally believed that the California Indian in his original condition was one of the most miserable and wretched of the world's aborigines. As one writer puts it: This is the general attitude taken by most writers of this later day, as well as of the padres themselves, yet I think I shall be able to show that in some regards it is a mistaken one. I do not believe the Indians were the degraded and brutal creatures the padres and others have endeavored to make out. This is no charge of bad
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CHAPTER VII
CHAPTER VII
The first consideration of the padres in dealing with the Indians was the salvation of their souls. Of this no honest and honorable man can hold any question. Serra and his coadjutors believed, without equivocation or reserve, the doctrines of the Church. As one reads his diary, his thought on this matter is transparent. In one place he thus naïvely writes: "It seemed to me that they (the Indians) would fall shortly into the apostolic and evangelic net." This accomplished, the Indians must be ke
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CHAPTER VIII
CHAPTER VIII
It was not the policy or intention of the Government of Spain to found Missions in the New World solely for the benefit of the natives. Philanthropic motives doubtless influenced the rulers to a certain degree; but to civilize barbarous peoples and convert them to the Catholic faith meant not only the rescue of savages from future perdition, but the enlargement of the borders of the Church, the preparation for future colonization, and, consequently, the extension of Spanish power and territory.
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CHAPTER IX
CHAPTER IX
The story of the founding of San Diego by Serra has already been given. It was the beginning of the realization of his fondest hopes. The early troubles with the Indians delayed conversions, but in 1773 Serra reported that some headway had been made. He gives the original name of the place as Cosoy, in 32° 43', built on a hill two gunshots from the shore, and facing the entrance to the port at Point Guijarros. The missionaries left in charge were Padres Fernando Parron and Francisco Gomez. About
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CHAPTER X
CHAPTER X
A brief account of the founding of San Carlos at Monterey, June 3, 1770, was given in an earlier chapter. What joy the discovery of the harbor and founding of the Mission caused in Mexico and Spain can be understood when it is remembered that for two centuries this thing had been desired. In the Mexican city the bells of the Cathedral rang forth merry peals as on special festival days, and a solemn mass of thanksgiving was held, at which all the city officials and dignitaries were present. A ful
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CHAPTER XI
CHAPTER XI
Before leaving San Carlos it will be well to explain the facts in regard to the Mission church at Monterey. Many errors have been perpetuated about this church. There is little doubt but that originally the Mission was established here, and the first church built on this site. But as I have elsewhere related, Padre Serra found it unwise to have the Indians and the soldiers too near together. In the establishment of the Missions, the presidios were founded to be a means of protection to the padre
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CHAPTER XII
CHAPTER XII
The third Mission of the series was founded in honor of San Antonio de Padua, July 14, 1771, by Serra, accompanied by Padres Pieras and Sitjar. One solitary Indian heard the dedicatory mass, but Serra's enthusiasm knew no bounds. He was assured that this "first fruit of the wilderness" would go forth and bring many of his companions to the priests. Immediately after the mass he hastened to the Indian, lavished much attention on him, and gave him gifts. That same day many other Indians came and c
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CHAPTER XIII
CHAPTER XIII
We have already seen that San Gabriel, the fourth Mission, was founded September 8, 1771. The natives gave cheerful assistance in bringing timber, erecting the wooden buildings, covering them with tules, and constructing the stockade enclosure which surrounded them. They also brought offerings of acorns and pine-nuts. In a few days so many of them crowded into camp that Padre Somero went to San Diego for an addition to the guard, and returned with two extra men. It was not long before the soldie
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CHAPTER XIV
CHAPTER XIV
Founded, as we have seen, by Serra himself, September I, 1772, by the end of 1773 the Mission of San Luis Obispo could report only twelve converts. Serra left the day after the founding, leaving Padre Cavalier in charge, with two Indians from Lower California, four soldiers and their corporal. Their only provisions were a few hundred pounds of flour and wheat, and a barrel of brown sugar. But the Indians were kind, in remembrance of Fages's goodness in shooting the bears, and brought them veniso
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CHAPTER XV
CHAPTER XV
The story of Bucareli's determination to found a presidio at San Francisco, and Anza's march with the colonists for it from Sonora, has already been recounted. When Serra and Galvez were making their original plans for the establishment of the three first Missions of Alta California, Serra expressed his disappointment that St. Francis was neglected by asking: "And for our founder St. Francis there is no Mission?" To which Galvez replied: "If St. Francis desires a Mission, let him show us his har
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CHAPTER XVI
CHAPTER XVI
On the tragic events at San Diego that led to the delay in the founding of San Juan Capistrano I have already fully dwelt. The Mission was founded by Serra, November 1, 1776, and the adobe church recently restored by the Landmarks Club is said to be the original church built at that time. Troubles began here early, as at San Gabriel, owing to the immorality of the guards with the Indian women, and in one disturbance three Indians were killed and several wounded. In 1781 the padre feared another
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CHAPTER XVII
CHAPTER XVII
Rivera delayed the founding of San Francisco and Santa Clara for reasons of his own; and when, in September, 1776, he received a letter from Viceroy Bucareli, in which were references clearly showing that it was supposed by the writer that they were already established, he set to work without further delay, and went with Padre Peña, as already related. The Mission was duly founded January 12, 1777. A square of seventy yards was set off and buildings at once begun. Cattle and other Mission proper
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CHAPTER XVIII
CHAPTER XVIII
For thirteen years the heart of the venerable Serra was made sick by the postponements in the founding of this Mission. The Viceroy de Croix had ordered Governor Rivera "to recruit seventy-five soldiers for the establishment of a presidio and three Missions in the channel of Santa Barbara: one towards the north of the channel, which was to be dedicated to the Immaculate Conception; one towards the south, dedicated to San Buenaventura, and a third in the centre, dedicated to Santa Barbara." It wa
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CHAPTER XIX
CHAPTER XIX
After the founding of San Buenaventura. Governor Neve arrived from San Gabriel, inspected the new site, and expressed himself as pleased with all that had been done. A few days later he, with Padre Serra, and a number of soldiers and officers, started up the coast, and, selecting a site known to the Indians after the name of their chief, Yanonalit , established the presidio of Santa Barbara. Yanonalit was very friendly, and as he had authority over thirteen rancherías he was able to help matters
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CHAPTER XX
CHAPTER XX
Although the date of the founding of this Mission is given as December 8, 1787,--for that was the day on which Presidente Lasuen raised the cross, blessed the site, celebrated mass, and preached a dedicatory sermon,--there was no work done for several months, owing to the coming of the rainy season. In the middle of March, 1788, Sergeant Cota of Santa Barbara, with a band of laborers and an escort, went up to prepare the necessary buildings; and early in April Lasuen, accompanied by Padres Vicen
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CHAPTER XXI
CHAPTER XXI
Lasuen found matters far easier for him in the founding of Missions than did Serra in his later years. The viceroy agreed to pay $1000 each for the expenses of the Missions of Santa Cruz and La Soledad, and $200 each for the traveling expenses of the four missionaries needed. April 1, 1790, the guardian sent provisions and tools for Santa Cruz to the value of $1021. Lasuen delayed the founding for awhile, however, as the needful church ornaments were not at hand; but as the viceroy promised them
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CHAPTER XXII
CHAPTER XXII
The Mission of "Our Lady of Solitude" has only a brief record in written history; but the little that is known and the present condition of the ruins suggest much that has never been recorded. Early in 1791 Padre Lasuen, who was searching for suitable locations for two new Missions, arrived at a point midway between San Antonio and Santa Clara. With quick perception he recognized the advantages of Soledad, known to the Indians as Chuttusgelis . The name of this region, bestowed by Crespí years p
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CHAPTER XXIII
CHAPTER XXIII
There was a period of rest after the founding of Santa Cruz and La Soledad. Padre Presidente Lasuen was making ready for a new and great effort. Hitherto the Mission establishments had been isolated units of civilization, each one alone in its work save for the occasional visits of governor, inspector, or presidente. Now they were to be linked together, by the founding of intermediate Missions, into one great chain, near enough for mutual help and encouragement, the boundary of one practically t
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CHAPTER XXIV
CHAPTER XXIV
The second of the "filling up the links of the chain" Missions was that of San Juan Bautista. Three days after the commandant of San Francisco had received his orders to furnish a guard for the founders of Mission San José, the commandant of Monterey received a like order for a guard for the founders of San Juan Bautista. This consisted of five men and Corporal Ballesteros. By June 17 this industrious officer had erected a church, missionary-house, granary, and guard-house, and a week later Lasu
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CHAPTER XXV
CHAPTER XXV
Lasuen's third Mission, of 1797, was San Miguel, located near a large ranchería named Sagshpileel , and on the site called Vahiá . One reason for the selection of the location is given in the fact that there was plenty of water at Santa Isabel and San Marcos for the irrigation of three hundred fanegas of seed. To this day the springs of Santa Isabel are a joy and delight to all who know them, and the remains of the old irrigating canals and dams, dug and built by the padres, are still to be seen
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CHAPTER XXVI
CHAPTER XXVI
On September 8, 1797, the seventeenth of the California Missions was founded by Padre Lasuen, in the Encino Valley, where Francisco Reyes had a rancho in the Los Angeles jurisdiction. The natives called it Achois Comihavit . Reyes' house was appropriated as a temporary dwelling for the missionary. The Mission was dedicated to Fernando III, King of Spain. Lasuen came down from San Miguel to Santa Barbara, especially for the foundation, and from thence with Sergeant Olivera and a military escort.
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CHAPTER XXVII
CHAPTER XXVII
The last Mission of the century, the last of Lasuen's administration, and the last south of Santa Barbara, was that of San Luis Rey. Lasuen himself explored the region and determined the site. The governor agreed to it, and on February 27, 1798, ordered a guard to be furnished from San Diego who should obey Lasuen implicitly and help erect the necessary buildings for the new Mission. The founding took place on June 13, in the presence of Captain Grajera and his guard, a few San Juan neophytes, a
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CHAPTER XXVIII
CHAPTER XXVIII
"Beautiful for situation" was the spot selected for the only Mission founded during the first decade of the nineteenth century,--Santa Inés. Governor Borica, who called California "the most peaceful and quiet country on earth," and under whose orders Padre Lasuen had established the five Missions of 1796-1797, had himself made explorations in the scenic mountainous regions of the coast, and recommended the location afterwards determined upon, called by the Indians Alajulapu , meaning rincon , or
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CHAPTER XXIX
CHAPTER XXIX
The Mission of the Archangel, San Rafael, was founded to give a health resort to a number of neophytes who were sick in San Francisco. The native name for the site was Nanaguani . The date of founding was December 14, 1817. There were about 140 neophytes transferred at first, and by the end of 1820 the number had increased to 590. In 1818 a composite building, including church, priest's house, and all the apartments required, was erected. It was of adobe, 87 feet long, 42 feet wide, and 18 feet
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CHAPTER XXX
CHAPTER XXX
Fifty-four years after the founding of the first Franciscan Mission in California, the site was chosen for the twenty-first and last, San Francisco Solano. This Mission was established at Sonoma under conditions already narrated. The first ceremonies took place July 4, 1823, and nine months later the Mission church was dedicated. This structure was built of boards, but by the end of 1824 a large building had been completed, made of adobe with tiled roof and corridor, also a granary and eight hou
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CHAPTER XXXI
CHAPTER XXXI
The Mission padres were the first circuit riders or pastors. It is generally supposed that the circuit rider is a device of the Methodist church, but history clearly reveals that long prior to the time of the sainted Wesley, and the denomination he founded, the padres were "riding the circuit," or walking, visiting the various rancherías which had no settled pastor. Where buildings for worship were erected at these places they were called chapels, or asistencias. Some of these chapels still rema
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CHAPEL OF SAN BERNARDINO
CHAPEL OF SAN BERNARDINO
It must not be forgotten that one of the early methods of reaching California was inland. Travelers came from Mexico, by way of Sonora, then crossed the Colorado River and reached San Gabriel and Monterey in the north, over practically the same route as that followed to-day by the Southern Pacific Railway, viz., crossing the river at Yuma, over the Colorado Desert, by way of the San Gorgonio Pass, and through the San Bernardino and San Gabriel valleys. It was in 1774 that Captain Juan Bautista d
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CHAPEL OF SAN MIGUEL
CHAPEL OF SAN MIGUEL
In 1803 a chapel was built at a ranchería called by the Indians Mescaltitlan , and the Spaniards San Miguel, six miles from Santa Barbara. It was of adobes, twenty-seven by sixty-six feet. In 1807 eighteen adobe dwellings were erected at the same place....
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CHAPEL OF SAN MIGUELITO
CHAPEL OF SAN MIGUELITO
One of the vistas of San Luis Obispo was a ranchería known as San Miguelito, and here in 1809 the governor gave his approval that a chapel should be erected. San Luis had several such vistas, and I am told that the ruins of several chapels are still in existence in that region....
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CHAPEL AT SANTA ISABEL (SAN DIEGO)
CHAPEL AT SANTA ISABEL (SAN DIEGO)
In 1816-19 the padres at San Diego urged the governor to give them permission to erect a chapel at Santa Isabel, some forty miles away, where two hundred baptized Indians were living. The governor did not approve, however, and nothing was done until after 1820. By 1822 the chapel was reported built, with several houses, a granary, and a graveyard. The population had increased to 450, and these materially aided San Diego in keeping the mountainous tribes, who were hostile, in check. A recent arti
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CHAPEL OF SANTA MARGARITA (SAN LUIS OBISPO)
CHAPEL OF SANTA MARGARITA (SAN LUIS OBISPO)
One of the ranches of San Luis Obispo was that of Santa Margarita on the north side of the Sierra Santa Lucia. As far as I know there is no record of the date when the chapel was built, yet it was a most interesting and important structure. In May, 1904, its identity was completely destroyed, its interior walls being dynamited and removed and the whole structure roofed over to be used as a barn. It originally consisted of a chapel about 40 feet long and 30 feet wide, and eight rooms. The chapel
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CHAPTER XXXII
CHAPTER XXXII
The disastrous effect of the order of secularization upon the Indians, as well as the Missions themselves, has been referred to in a special chapter. Here I wish to give, in brief, a clearer idea of the present condition of the Indians than was there possible. In the years 1833-1837 secularization actually was accomplished. The knowledge that it was coming had already done much injury. The Pious Fund, which then amounted to upwards of a half-million dollars, was confiscated by the Mexican govern
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CHAPTER XXXIII
CHAPTER XXXIII
The question is often asked: Is there a Mission architecture? It is not my intention here to discuss this question in extenso , but merely to answer it by asking another and then making an affirmation. What is it that constitutes a style in architecture? It cannot be that every separate style must show different and distinct features from every other style. It is not enough that in each style there are specific features that, when combined, form an appropriate and harmonious relationship that di
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CHAPTER XXXIV
CHAPTER XXXIV
It is an incontrovertible fact that no great idea ever rests in its own accomplishment. There are offshoots from it, ideas generated in other minds entirely different from the original, yet dependent upon it for life. For instance, which of the Mission fathers had the faintest conception that in erecting their structures under the adverse conditions then existing in California, they were practically originating a new style of architecture; or that in making their crude and simple chairs, benches
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CHAPTER XXXV
CHAPTER XXXV
We cannot to-day determine how the Franciscans of the Southwest decorated the interiors of all their churches. Some of these buildings have disappeared entirely, while others have been restored or renovated beyond all semblance of their original condition. But enough are left to give us a satisfactory idea of the labors of the fathers and of their subject Indians. At the outset, it must be confessed that while the fathers understood well the principles of architecture and created a natural, spon
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CHAPTER XXXVI
CHAPTER XXXVI
SAN DIEGO. From Los Angeles to San Diego, Santa Fé Railway, 126 miles, one way fare $3.85; round trip $5.00, good ten days; or $7.00, good 30 days, with stop-over privileges at Oceanside, which allows a visit to San Luis Rey and Pala (via Oceanside) and San Juan Capistrano. Or steamship, $3.00 and $2.25; round trip, first class, $5.25. The Mission is six miles from San Diego, and a carriage must be taken all the way, or the electric car to the bluff, fare five cents; thence by Bluff Road, on bur
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