Title supplied by cataloger.; Herman J. Schultheis was born in Aachen, Germany in 1900, and immigrated to the United States in the mid-1920s after obtaining a Ph.D. in mechanical and electrical engineering. He married Ethel Wisloh in 1936, and the pair moved to Los Angeles the following year. He worked in the film industry from the late 1930s to the mid-1940s, most notably on the animated features "Fantasia" and "Pinocchio." His detailed notebook, documenting the special effects for "Fantasia," is the subject of a 14-minute short-subject included on the film's DVD. In 1949, he started employment with Librascope as a patent engineer. Schultheis was an avid amateur photographer who traveled the world with his cameras. It was on one of these photographic exhibitions in 1955 that he disappeared in the jungles of Guatemala. His remains were discovered 18 months later. The digitized portion of this collection represents the images Schultheis took of Los Angeles and its surrounding communities after he relocated to the area in 1937. La Misio´n San Diego de Alcala´, also known as San Diego Mission, is located at 10818 San Diego Mission Road. It was established on May 14, 1769 and founded on July 16th of the same year by Father Juni´pero Serra, serving as the headquarters of the Alta California Mission System from 1769 to 1771. This was the first of the 21 missions founded by Serra, and was California's first church. The Mission was originally built overlooking the bay, but remained there only five years as the water supply was not sufficient for sustaining the crops, the soil was not fertile enough, and the American Indians were intimidated by the military. The decision to relocate the Mission six miles east was approved and the new site was closer to the San Diego River and the American Indian villages. Unfortunately this new location proved to be a bit problematic, as the land was difficult to till and the water was not always plentiful. But with perseverance, the Mission eventually became more productive. Over the years, the church was enlarged to accommodate the growing population. In 1931, the Mission was rebuilt to mirror the 1813 church structure. On April 15, 1970, Misio´n San Diego de Alcala´ was designated a National Historic Landmark, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places - #70000144. It was also designated a California Historical Landmark - #242, and a City of San Diego Historic Designation - #113. In 1976, Pope Paul VI designated Misio´n San Diego de Alcala´ as a Minor Basilica. Today this Mission serves as an active Catholic parish and cultural center. Exterior view of the main entrance to the San Diego Mission, with its campanario (bell wall), stone arched doorway, and showing its crumbling adobe walls. The bells were rung at mealtimes, to call the Mission residents to work and to religious services, during births and funerals, to signal the approach of a ship or returning missionary, and at other times; novices were instructed in the intricate rituals associated with ringing the mission bells. Today, all five bells are only rung in unison once a year and that occurs on the celebration of the anniversary of the founding of the Mission in July.
Type
image
Format
1 photographic print :b&w ;14 x 11 cm. Photographic prints
San Diego Mission Missions, Spanish--California--San Diego Church buildings--California--San Diego Catholic churches--California--San Diego Bell towers--California--San Diego Bells--California--San Diego San Diego (Calif.) Schultheis Collection photographs Serra, Juni´pero,Saint,1713-1784
If you're wondering about permissions and what you can do with this item, a good starting point is the "rights information" on this page. See our terms of use for more tips.
Share your story
Has Calisphere helped you advance your research, complete a project, or find something meaningful? We'd love to hear about it; please send us a message.
