Mission San Rafael Arcángel is a Spanish mission in

San Rafael, California San Rafael ( ; Spanish for " St. Raphael", ) is a city and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's popula ...

. It was founded in 1817 as a medical '' asistencia'' ("sub-mission") of

Mission San Francisco de Asís Mission San Francisco de Asís ( es, Misión San Francisco de Asís), commonly known as Mission Dolores (as it was founded near the Dolores creek), is a Spanish Californian mission and the oldest surviving structure in San Francisco. Located i ...

. It was a hospital to treat sick Native Americans, making it

Alta California Alta California ('Upper California'), also known as ('New California') among other names, was a province of New Spain, formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but ...

's first sanitarium.Ruscin, p. 169 The weather was much better than in San Francisco, which helped the ill get better. It was not intended to be a stand-alone mission, but nevertheless grew and prospered and was granted full mission status on October 19, 1822.

History

Mission San Rafael Arcángel was founded on December 14, 1817, by Father

Vicente Francisco de Sarría Father Vicente Francisco de Sarría (1767 Etxebarri, Spain – 1835 Soledad) was a Basque missionary to the Americas. Venture into Alta California Father Sarría baptized John Gilroy, the first foreigner to permanently settle in California. ...

, as a medical '' asistencia'' ("sub-mission") of the San Francisco Mission to treat their sick population. It was granted full mission status in 1822. This was one of the missions turned over to the

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

government in 1833 after the

Mexican secularization act of 1833 Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the s ...

. In 1840, there were 150 Native Americans still at the Mission. By 1844, Mission San Rafael Arcángel had been abandoned; what was left of the empty buildings was sold for $8,000 in 1846. The Mission was used by

John C. Fremont John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

as his headquarters during the

Bear Flag Revolt The California Republic ( es, La República de California), or Bear Flag Republic, was an unrecognized breakaway state from Mexico, that for 25 days in 1846 militarily controlled an area north of San Francisco, in and around what is now S ...

. On June 28, 1846, three men departed the mission, including

Kit Carson Christopher Houston Carson (December 24, 1809 – May 23, 1868) was an American frontiersman. He was a fur trapper, wilderness guide, Indian agent, and U.S. Army officer. He became a frontier legend in his own lifetime by biographies and ...

, and murdered three unarmed Californians under the order of

: Don José R. Berreyesa, father of José de los Santos Berreyesa, along with the twin sons of Don

Francisco de Haro Francisco de Haro (1792 – November 28, 1849) was a Californio politician, soldier, and ranchero, who served as the 1st and 5th Alcalde of San Francisco (initially known as Yerba Buena). He notably commissioned the first land survey of Sa ...

, Ramon and Francisco De Haro.The Beginnings of San Francisco App. D – The Murder of Berreyesa and the De Haros In 1847, a priest was once again living at the Mission. A new

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

church was built near the old chapel ruins in 1861, and, in 1870, the rest of the ruins were removed to make room for the City of San Rafael. All that was left of the Mission was a single pear tree from the old Mission's orchard. It is for this reason that San Rafael is known as the "most obliterated of California's missions".Ruscin, p. 167 In 1949, a replica of the chapel was built next to the current Saint Raphael's Church on the site of the original hospital in

which was built in 1919.

Notes

References

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External links

"Mission San Rafael Arcángel, the Hospital That Became a Mission
via The California Frontier Project
Early photographs, sketches, land surveys of Mission San Rafael Arcángel
via Calisphere, California Digital Library
A historical drawing of the mission
at

the Bancroft Library The Bancroft Library in the center of the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, is the university's primary special-collections library. It was acquired from its founder, Hubert Howe Bancroft, in 1905, with the proviso that it retai ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mission San Rafael Arcangel San Rafael Archangel 1817 in Alta California San Rafael, California Churches in Marin County, California Museums in Marin County, California History museums in California Religious museums in California 1817 establishments in Alta California Buildings and structures in San Rafael, California California Historical Landmarks History of Marin County, California

History

See also

Notes

References

External links