Capture California, the Game-2012
Adventure: 101 - 15 : Mission
La
Purisima Conception, 11th mission
Team: Thing One, Thing Two
Date: August 17, 2012
Location: Lompoc
Description:
Mission La Purisima Conception is the
last mission which we went to on our trip to San Diego. Being close
to Mission Santa Ines was helpful. Also the mission is now a State
Park. Consequently there is a very nice visitor's center, with a
pretty good display for all stages of the area—from Native
Americans to the CCC. The CCC had taken on the task of reconstructing
the mission After it disintegrated. The job which they did made this
the most complete mission reconstruction in the state of California.
So this all allowed us to spend an
enjoyable and long time at this mission. First we spent 45 minutes in
the museum, to get a better understanding of the area and the people.
Then Thing One and Thing Two went on a hike—you can see our hikes
on the blog (Hikes
55,
56,
57, and
58). This complimented the
information in visitor center—the El Camino Real, the water system
and the tanning vats all added to our understanding of mission life.
Then we went to the actual mission area, which is a couple hundred
yards from the visitor center. This was a day which the Mountain Man
days (August 17 and 18). This is where volunteers come in an re-enact
what life would be like. We were particularly fascinated by the
person starting a fire with a bowstring, straw and wood. But we also
talked with a man and his daughter-he played one of the Spanish
guardsman. He talked about how the single men lived communally while
the married ones had there own rooms. After three plus hours, we
needed to leave after spending an enjoyable time.
From Wikipedia
site:
The mission is part of the
larger La
Purísima Mission State Historic Park, part of the California
State Parks system, and along with Mission
San Francisco de Solano is one of only two of the Spanish
missions in California that is no longer under the control of the
Catholic
Church. It is currently the only example in California of a
complete Spanish Catholic mission complex.
After
Mexico
won the
Mexican
War of Independence in 1823, Spanish funding ceased to the
Santa
Barbara Presidio. Many soldiers at the mission who were no longer
being paid by the new Mexican government took out their frustrations
on the local Chumash Indians. After a soldier apparently beat an
Indian at nearby
Mission
Santa Inés, the
Chumash
Revolt of 1824 occurred at that mission. It spread to La Purisima
Mission, where the Chumash people took over the mission for one month
until more soldiers arrived from
Monterey
Presidio. Eventually, the Chumash lost their hold on the mission
with many leaving the mission soon thereafter. However, many of the
Indians who had sought refuge in the neighboring mountains during the
revolt returned to the mission.
In the 20th century, the
Civilian
Conservation Corps (CCC) pledged to restore the mission if enough
land could be provided to convert it into a historic landmark. The
Catholic
Church and the
Union
Oil Company donated sufficient land for the CCC to proceed with
the restoration. The nine buildings as well as many small structures
and the original water system were fully restored with the mission's
dedication occurring on December 7, 1941, the same day the United
States entered World War II.
From California
Missions Resource Center site:
Mission Church: The
mission church, which has a simple exterior, has been handsomely
restored. Located as it is in an state historic park, it is not an
active church.
Significant Event(s): In
1824 a revolt of the neophytes that began in Santa Ines spread to La
Purisima. The rebels captured the mission and held it for about a
month. In the battle sixteen Indians and one soldier died. Seven
Indians were condemned to death.
From California
State Parks site:
Founded in 1787 by Father Lasuen the
mission is located 50 miles west of Santa Barbara. Considered to be
the best example of mission architecture, it has 37 rooms that have
been completely restored and furnished. Volunteers perform living
history demonstrations of mission life such as candle making and
weaving. In the garden area, water flows through a series of pools
and a fountain before passing through the lavandareas where the
mission women washed clothes. Plants were brought from the 20 other
mission gardens to form one of the finest collections of early
California flora in existence. Horses, cattle, burros and the
four-horned Churro sheep graze in the quiet pastures.
2295
Purisima Rd., Lompoc, 93436, (805) 733-3713
Capture California, the Game-2012
