Named to a National Historic Landmark in 2006, of California's missions, it is one that retains more than most of its layout and buildings, including a portion of its neophyte village

How to Get There

From Los Angeles (214 miles): Get on US-101 N. Drive from I-5 N to Kern County. Take exit 278 from I-5 N. Continue on CA-46 W. Drive to Mission St in San Miguel.

Overview

Mission San Miguel Arcángel is a Spanish mission in San Miguel, San Luis Obispo County, California. It was established on July 25, 1797 by the Franciscan order, on a site chosen specifically due to the large number of Salinan Indians that inhabited the area, whom the Spanish priests wanted to evangelize.

The mission remains in use as a parish church of the Diocese of Monterey. After being closed to the public for six years due to the 2003 San Simeon earthquake, the church reopened on September 29, 2009. Inside the church are murals designed by Esteban Munras.

The mission was put on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971 and was named to a National Historic Landmark in 2006. Of California's missions, it is one that retains more than most of its layout and buildings, including a portion of its neophyte village.

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

Features

The Mission Arcade, a series of 12 arches, is original. The variety of shapes and sizes was planned and the Mission was known for this arcade. The first chapel on the site was replaced within a year of its construction by a larger adobe chapel, which burned in the 1806 fire. The current mission church was built between 1816 and 1818. It is 144 long, 27 feet (8.2 m) wide, and 40 feet (12 m) high. The cemetery adjacent to the church holds the remains of 2,249 Native Americans listed in the Mission's burial records. The painted walls inside the church are the original artwork by artist Esteban Munras and other Salinan artists.

Associated structures

The Rios-Caledonia Adobe was built in 1835 just south of the San Miguel Mission as a home for the overseer of Mission lands. This historic site is well preserved with the original Inn and Stagecoach stop now a museum and small gift shop. A building was added in 1930 that is now a unique history research library. The grounds are maintained by San Luis Obispo County Parks with picnic sites and restrooms available.

JPRoy2101, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; Image Size Adjusted

The Historic Rios-Caledonia Adobe is a California Historical Landmark (#936) and is listed on the National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places (#71000190).

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