Old mission church remains in use as a chapel of Saint Joseph Catholic Church, a parish of the Diocese of Oakland. The museum also features a visitor center, museum, and slide show telling the history of the mission

How to Get There

From San Francisco (48 miles): Get on US-101 S/Central Fwy. Follow I-80 E, I-580 E and I-680 S to CA-238 S/Mission Blvd in Fremont. Take exit 16 from I-680 S. Turn left onto CA-238 S/Mission Blvd.

Overview

Mission San José is a Spanish mission located in the present-day city of Fremont, California. It was founded on June 11, 1797, by the Franciscan order and was the fourteenth Spanish mission established in California. The mission is the namesake of the Mission San José district of Fremont, which was an independent town subsumed into the city when it was incorporated in 1957. The Mission entered a long period of gradual decline after Mexican secularization act of 1833. After suffering decline, neglect and earthquakes most of the mission was in ruins. Restoration efforts in the intervening periods have reconstructed many of the original structures. The old mission church remains in use as a chapel of Saint Joseph Catholic Church, a parish of the Diocese of Oakland. The museum also features a visitor center, museum, and slide show telling the history of the mission.

The original mission complex consisted of over 100 adobe buildings. Restoration efforts by the Native Sons of the Golden West in 1915 and 1950 saved the surviving portion of the Mission wing and converted it into a museum, set in the gracious surroundings of flowers and palm trees. In 1956, the town of Mission San José incorporated with four others to become the City of Fremont. Plans to reconstruct the church of Mission San José were launched in 1973. The Victorian-style rectory was relocated to nearby Anza Street and the Gothic-style wooden church was moved to San Mateo where it has been restored as a house of worship by an Anglican church group. After extensive archaeological excavations and planning, construction began in 1982 on a replica of the 1809 adobe church. Work was completed and the facility rededicated on June 11, 1985. The walls vary in thickness from 4 to 5 feet (1.5 m). Old timbers and rawhide thongs demonstrate the practicality of the Padres who, having no iron nails for building, substituted the leather laces. Consequently, the lumber used in the reconstruction has been given a hand-hewn appearance.

With its "simple and forthright" exterior, the Mission church stands as a tribute to those whose efforts made this dream come true. The richly decorated interior follows the descriptions in the historic inventories of the 1830s. The crystal chandeliers are copies of period pieces similar to ones listed in the old church inventories. Two of the original statues have been placed on the two side altars. Ecce Homo, a figure of Christ clothed in a scarlet robe and crowned with thorns, stands on a balcony above one of the side altars. The other statue of Saint Bonaventure was carved from wood and then painted. The original baptismal font of hammered copper on a turned wood base has been returned to the church, as has the bell wheel used by the Ohlones during the sacred parts of the Mass.

Jllm06, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons ; Image Size Adjusted

The chapel interior

The reredos behind the main altar features a painting of Christ, a statue of Saint Joseph, and two carved figures: a dove represents the Holy Spirit, and at the top sits God the Father with detailed golden rays surrounding him. The altar and choir railings were copied from an original piece found in the museum during the reconstruction. The Mission cemetery (camp Santo), where a great number of Mission pioneers are buried, is situated to the side of the church. During the dig, the marble grave marker of Robert Livermore was located in the original tile floor of the church. It was carefully repaired and replaced in the reconstructed church. Many prominent Spaniards are buried in the floor of the Mission church, but only Livermore's grave is marked. Thousands of Ohlones are resting in the Ohlone cemetery located almost a mile away from the mission down Washington Boulevard. Three of the original Mission bells were transferred from the destroyed adobe church to the wooden church of 1869, where they hung until the 1970s. The fourth bell had been given to a church in Oakland and recast, but was returned to the Mission during the reconstruction of the bell tower. Now all four bells are hung, ready to ring on special occasions.

In 1985, the restoration of the church was completed by the Committee for the Restoration of the Mission San Jose and the Catholic Diocese of Oakland. It is considered to be a near-perfect replica of the original church, though it incorporates a concealed structural steel frame which provides earthquake resistance. Further reconstruction of the missing part of the Padres' living quarters and a restoration of the surviving adobe wing are part of the overall plans for the Mission. Today, the Mission is administered by St. Joseph's parish, which includes the Mission building and the surrounding areas, an ordinary church building used to fulfill the daily needs of the parish, and a school serving students in grades 1-8.

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Mission San José (California)", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.