Mission San Juan Capistrano

Mission (or Criolla) grapes
were made into wine for meals
and for the Roman Catholic
mass, where wine signifies
the blood of Jesus Christ.

Mission San Juan Capistrano
26801 Ortega Hwy., San Juan Capistrano, California
(officially est. on All Saints' Day, November 1, 1776,
after being driven out the year before by the natives)

Named after St. Giovanni da Capestrano (1386-1456), it was the
7th of 21 missions founded by the Franciscan order in California.

"When the swallows come back to Capistrano,
that's the day I pray that you'll come back to me."
—from Leon René's 1940 hit song

More Info: The San Juan Capistrano Historical Society
Photos copyright © October 2009 Kat Avila / Canon SD780 IS

Statue of Father Junípero
Serra and an indigenous
boy erected in 1914 when
political and religious
colonialism was unquestioned.

Fountain of the Four
Evangelists (Apostle Matthew,
Mark, Luke, Apostle John)
in the central courtyard
(built circa 1920)

gardens in the front	central courtyard	A waterlily symbolizes a pure heart.	waterlilies	north corridor
soldiers barracks (built in 1791)	soldiers barracks close-up	Cow hide at one time was the currency of the West.	south corridor	padre's bedroom

Serra's Church (aka Serra Chapel) (built in 1782) The oldest structure in continuous use in California, and the only surviving church where Father Junípero Serra celebrated mass.
rows of votive candles	doorways to the courtyard and chapel	above the entrance to the church	ceiling	Holy water stoup at the entrance where Catholics dip their fingers, followed by the sign of the cross, an act recalling one's baptism.

looking toward the altar	Our Lady of Guadalupe (Sp. Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe)	Three padres are buried under the sanctuary (source: MSJC, Wikipedia).	Golden Altar, a 400- year-old baroque retablo from Barcelona, Spain.	St. Peregrine, patron saint of sufferers, in a side chapel
looking toward the back	pulpit on the left side of the church

Sacred Garden and Bell Wall (aka campanario, Spanish for "belfry") The bells are rung for St. Joseph's Day/Swallows Day (March 19) and important Catholic Church, community, and national events. The two largest bells are recasts of the bells that hung in the bell tower of the Great Stone Church; the original bells are displayed where the bell tower would have stood.
	The plaque below the bells commemorates the 1969 presidential visit of Richard and Pat Nixon and their ringing of the smallest bell, the bell of San Rafael, which was cast in 1804.	Sacred Garden (built 1920)		Paul Arbiso (1895-1994), official bell ringer for 42 years.

Great Stone Church (1797-1812) On the morning of December 8, 1812, the Wrightwood Earthquake toppled the church, which was already weakened by the 1800 San Diego Earthquake and whose construction was not wholly supervised by a master mason (source: "The Great Stone Church," Waymarking.com). Forty-two indigenous worshippers died (source: mission handout). The candle-bearing ghost of a young penitent named Magdalena haunts the ruins (primary source: Haunted Southland, p. 16).
overall view	overall view	model of original church with bell tower	left corner of church	front and center

Educational Exhibits
2-wheel olive millstone (built circa 1880, renov. 1930) The pulp was then pressed into olive oil at another spot. Olive oil had many uses, e.g., for cooking and lamps.	pumpkin and kìicha (native family dwelling made of willow saplings and tule reeds)	drying rack with gourds	"Mission San Juan Capistrano was the only California mission to smelt iron. … The blacksmith forged the iron into tools, implements, hinges and other articles." (text from sign)	coastal prickly pear

Mission Cemetery (1781-1850; exception made for Father John O'Sullivan) About 2,000-3,000 people are buried here, most of them have no grave markers and were of the Acjachemen Nation (aka Juaneños) (source: mission handout).
"In this holy place lie the bodies of those who built the mission. May their souls rest in peace. Erected 1924." (text from plaque) A Celtic cross caps the weathered memorial.	"The Right Rev. Msgr. St. John O'Sullivan Born March 19, 1874 Ordained to the priesthood June 12, 1904 Died July 22, 1933 Pastor of Old Mission 1910-1933" (O'Sullivan, who promoted the mission's restoration, is buried in front of the memorial.)	Spanish soldier & land grantee José Antonio Yorba's cenotaph can be seen on the left side of the photo. The exact location of his remains in the cemetery is unmarked.	"José Antonio Yorba I Born July 20, 1743 San Saturnino, Spain Died January 16, 1825 Rancho Santa Ana, California Member of Portolá Expedition 1769"

O'Neill Museum (est. 1979) and the Montanez Adobe on Los Rios Street Los Ríos Street National Register Historic District (since 1983): "This area was inhabited by the Acjachemen Nation Native Americans [Spanish term Juaneños] before nearby Mission San Juan Capistrano was established. Los Ríos Street is the oldest continually occupied residential neighborhood in California. There are 31 original sites existing from the district's historic period of 1794 to 1946." (text from plaque)
Los Ríos (The Rivers) street sign	Los Ríos Street	O'Neill Museum (formerly the Garcia/Pryor residence, built circa 1880) at 31831 Los Ríos St.	The ghost of former tenant Albert Pryor (from 1903 to 1955) haunts the porch (source: museum handout).	Montanez Adobe (built 1794) at 31745 Los Ríos St.