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Mission Santa Barbara
Mission Santa Barbara (Spanish: Misión de Santa Bárbara) is a Spanish mission in Santa Barbara, California, United States. Often referred to as the 'Queen of the Missions', it was founded by Padre Fermín Lasuén for the Franciscan order on December 4, 1786, the feast day of Saint Barbara, as the tenth mission of what would later become 21 missions in Alta California.
Mission Santa Barbara, like other California missions, was built as part of a broader effort to consolidate the Spanish claim on Alta California in the face of threats from rival empires. In attempting to do this, Spain sought to turn local indigenous tribes into good Spanish citizens (for Mission Santa Barbara, this was the Chumash-Barbareño tribe). This required religious conversion and integration into the Spanish colonial economy – for the local Chumash people, the environmental changes wrought by the Mission's large herd of livestock, combined with epidemics and military force, meant that tribal members often had little choice but to join the mission system, resulting in a type of forced servitude.
The mission is the namesake of the city of Santa Barbara as well as of Santa Barbara County and comes from the legend of Saint Barbara, a girl who was beheaded by her father for following the Christian faith.
The Mission grounds occupy a rise between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Ynez Mountains, and were consecrated by Father Fermín Lasuén, who had taken over the presidency of the California mission chain upon the death of Father Junípero Serra. Mission Santa Barbara is, along with mission San Luis Rey, the only mission to remain under the leadership of the Franciscan Friars since its founding, and today is a parish church of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
The early missionaries built three different chapels during the first few years, each larger than the previous one. In 1787, the first chapel built was a palisaded log structure with a grass roof and an earthen floor that measured 39 ft (12 m) x 14 ft (4.3 m). In 1789, the second chapel was constructed out of adobe with roof tiles and measured 83 ft (25 m) x 17 ft (5.2 m). In 1793–94, it was replaced again with another adobe tiled-roof structure that measured 125 ft (38 m) x 26 ft (7.9 m). However, the third chapel was destroyed by the 1812 Santa Barbara earthquake on December 21.
By 1815, construction of the fourth Mission structure had begun and was mostly completed by 1820. Most probably under the direction of master stonemason José Antonio Ramiez (as estimated by historians), the work was performed by a labor force of Canalino people. The towers were severely damaged in the June 29, 1925, earthquake, but the walls were held intact by the buttresses. Restoration was undertaken the following year. By project completion in 1927, the church had been accurately rebuilt to retain its original design using the original materials to reproduce the walls, columns, and arches. Some years later it was discovered that the concrete foundation of the church had begun to disintegrate while it was settling into the ground, thereby causing the towers to crack. Between 1950 and 1953, the facade and towers were demolished and rebuilt to duplicate their original form. The appearance of the interior of the church has not been altered significantly since 1820.
Remains of the Mission's original infrastructure constructed primarily by the indentured Chumash people under Franciscan rule are located on the eastern abutting property known as Mission Historical Park, which was sold to the City in 1928. These ruins include tanning vats, a pottery kiln, and a guard house as well as an extensive water distribution system that incorporated aqueducts, a filtration system, two reservoirs, and a hydro-powered gristmill. The larger reservoir, which was built in 1806 by the expedient of damming of Mission Canyon situated to the north within the existing Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, continued to serve as a functioning component of the city's water system until 1993. Also intact near the entrance to the Mission is the original fountain and lavadero.
Mission Santa Barbara was part of a broader plan by the Kingdom of Spain to protect its claim on Alta California against rival colonial powers (Russia and Great Britain). The mission was expected to turn the local indigenous people into upstanding Spanish citizens through conversion to Catholicism and by making them productive members of the Spanish colonial economy.
Mission Santa Barbara
Mission Santa Barbara (Spanish: Misión de Santa Bárbara) is a Spanish mission in Santa Barbara, California, United States. Often referred to as the 'Queen of the Missions', it was founded by Padre Fermín Lasuén for the Franciscan order on December 4, 1786, the feast day of Saint Barbara, as the tenth mission of what would later become 21 missions in Alta California.
Mission Santa Barbara, like other California missions, was built as part of a broader effort to consolidate the Spanish claim on Alta California in the face of threats from rival empires. In attempting to do this, Spain sought to turn local indigenous tribes into good Spanish citizens (for Mission Santa Barbara, this was the Chumash-Barbareño tribe). This required religious conversion and integration into the Spanish colonial economy – for the local Chumash people, the environmental changes wrought by the Mission's large herd of livestock, combined with epidemics and military force, meant that tribal members often had little choice but to join the mission system, resulting in a type of forced servitude.
The mission is the namesake of the city of Santa Barbara as well as of Santa Barbara County and comes from the legend of Saint Barbara, a girl who was beheaded by her father for following the Christian faith.
The Mission grounds occupy a rise between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Ynez Mountains, and were consecrated by Father Fermín Lasuén, who had taken over the presidency of the California mission chain upon the death of Father Junípero Serra. Mission Santa Barbara is, along with mission San Luis Rey, the only mission to remain under the leadership of the Franciscan Friars since its founding, and today is a parish church of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
The early missionaries built three different chapels during the first few years, each larger than the previous one. In 1787, the first chapel built was a palisaded log structure with a grass roof and an earthen floor that measured 39 ft (12 m) x 14 ft (4.3 m). In 1789, the second chapel was constructed out of adobe with roof tiles and measured 83 ft (25 m) x 17 ft (5.2 m). In 1793–94, it was replaced again with another adobe tiled-roof structure that measured 125 ft (38 m) x 26 ft (7.9 m). However, the third chapel was destroyed by the 1812 Santa Barbara earthquake on December 21.
By 1815, construction of the fourth Mission structure had begun and was mostly completed by 1820. Most probably under the direction of master stonemason José Antonio Ramiez (as estimated by historians), the work was performed by a labor force of Canalino people. The towers were severely damaged in the June 29, 1925, earthquake, but the walls were held intact by the buttresses. Restoration was undertaken the following year. By project completion in 1927, the church had been accurately rebuilt to retain its original design using the original materials to reproduce the walls, columns, and arches. Some years later it was discovered that the concrete foundation of the church had begun to disintegrate while it was settling into the ground, thereby causing the towers to crack. Between 1950 and 1953, the facade and towers were demolished and rebuilt to duplicate their original form. The appearance of the interior of the church has not been altered significantly since 1820.
Remains of the Mission's original infrastructure constructed primarily by the indentured Chumash people under Franciscan rule are located on the eastern abutting property known as Mission Historical Park, which was sold to the City in 1928. These ruins include tanning vats, a pottery kiln, and a guard house as well as an extensive water distribution system that incorporated aqueducts, a filtration system, two reservoirs, and a hydro-powered gristmill. The larger reservoir, which was built in 1806 by the expedient of damming of Mission Canyon situated to the north within the existing Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, continued to serve as a functioning component of the city's water system until 1993. Also intact near the entrance to the Mission is the original fountain and lavadero.
Mission Santa Barbara was part of a broader plan by the Kingdom of Spain to protect its claim on Alta California against rival colonial powers (Russia and Great Britain). The mission was expected to turn the local indigenous people into upstanding Spanish citizens through conversion to Catholicism and by making them productive members of the Spanish colonial economy.
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