California Missions Mrs. Burns Room 803
Table of Contents • Introduction • The Mission Today • History of the Mission • Mission Life • Closing • Bibliography / Web Sites
Mission San Juan Capistrano • San Juan Capistrano is best known for its week-long celebration of the return of the swallows. • The swallows return every year around March 19 to build their nests against the arches of the ruins.
The Mission Today • Most of the land is now Orange County. • The roof was composed of seven masonry domes. • A Moorish fountain is in the plaza garden. • A statue of Father Serra and a native youth stands near the Mission entrance.
Mission Today -Continued • The church was known as the Great Stone Church. It was made with yellow sandstone that was dug up six miles away, and held together with limestone mortar. • The Great Stone Church had a bell tower that was 120 feet tall with a rooster weathervane on top. There were 4 bells, 2 large and 2 small. • The compound had living quarters, storage buildings, workshops, barracks, a jail, and more. It surrounds a patio.
History of the Mission • Father Junipero Serra established the mission on November 1, 1776. • It is the 7th of 21 missions. • The mission is located 70 miles north of San Diego. • The mission is named in honor of St. John of Capistrano, who was a religious scholar. • San Juan Capistrano is also known as “The Jewel of the Missions.”
History of the Mission - Continued • In December 1812 an earthquake destroyed the church. • The mission was secularized in 1833. • In 1865 the mission was returned to the church.
Mission Life • San Juan Capistrano was a prosperous mission with fields of grain, vegetables and fruit. • The sale of cattle hides to New England shoe factories brought much of the Mission’s wealth.
Closing • My favorite part of this report was finding out about the swallows that return every year. • I learned a lot about how the mission was built and what makes it so beautiful to tourist. • I’m looking forward to visiting the Mission on our field trip.
Web Sites • Http://www.bgmm.Com/missions/index.htm • http://gocalifornia.about.com/cs/missioncalifornia/index.htm?iam=dpile&terms=%2BCalifornia+%2BMissions • http://gocalifornia.about.com/cs/missiongeneral/index.htm?terms=California+Missions+All
Works Cited • Microsoft Office 2000