Doheny Memorial Library, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189 Public Domain. Release under the CC BY Attribution license--http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/--Credit both “University of Southern California. Libraries” and “California Historical Society” as the source. Digitally reproduced by the USC Digital Library; From the California Historical Society Collection at the University of Southern California Send requests to address or e-mail given USC Libraries Special Collections specol@usc.edu
Description
Photograph of a view of the ruins of the chapel of San Pedro at Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, San Diego County, ca.1900. Remnants of what used to be the walls or passageways of the mission are visible in the foreground (right and left). Wild vegetation are reclaiming the land around the ruins. At far, there are two pillar-like objects, which may have originally been part of the adobe chapel. "Life at the Mission flourished until 1834 when secularization took place and the Mission was administered by the Mexican Government. In 1846, the Mission was sold by Mexican Governor Pio Pico for $2,437.00. The Mission's property was divided up, its buildings stripped of all material goods and the Mission left for ruin. The Mission was abandoned except during the Mexican War and shortly thereafter when the United States troops, including the famous Mormon Battalion, were quartered here. The Mission was incorporated into the United States in 1850 when California became the 34th state of the Union. A patent and proclamation restoring Mission San Luis Rey to the Roman Catholic Bishop of Los Angeles was signed by President Abraham Lincoln on March 18, 1865, less than one month before his assassination. However, the Mission remained abandoned for an additional 30 years." -- unknown author. "In 1892, a group of Franciscans from Zacatecas, Mexico arrived at the Mission to take up residence. Father Joseph Jeremiah O'Keefe, an Irish born, Spanish-speaking Franciscan, came shortly thereafter to San Luis Rey to supervise the Mexican Franciscans and began the arduous task of restoring the Mission with hopes of making it a Franciscan Missionary college. After preliminary repairs, the church building was rededicated on May 12, 1893 by Bishop Mora. Father O'Keefe remained at the Mission until 1912, overseeing the first major reconstruction of San Luis Rey. Through the hard work of the Franciscans led by Father O'Keefe (the re-builder), the Mission was brought back to life. The years following Father O'Keefe's departure have seen gradual, yet extensive, restoration. Further improvements and the reconstruction of Mission structures have almost completely restored the Mission to its early grandeur. Mission San Luis Rey was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970. However, the Mission does not receive any Federal, State or church funds for its support. The Mission depends upon the generosity and support of its volunteers and visitors to continue the restoration efforts so that Mission San Luis Rey will remain the 'King of the Missions'." -- unknown author.
Type
image
Format
2 photographs : photonegative, photoprint, b&w 21 x 26 cm. negatives (photographic) photographic prints photographs
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