Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

**Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad**
Location	Soledad, California
Looking toward the rebuilt chapel at Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad in December 2004.
Name as Founded	La Misión de María Santísima, Nuestra Señora Dolorosísima de la Soledad ^[1]
Translation	The Mission of Sacred Mary, Our Most Sorrowful Lady of Solitude
Namesake	Sacred Mary, Our Most Sorrowful Lady of Solitude
Founding Date	October 9, 1791 ^[2]
Founding Priest(s)	Father Fermín Lasuén
Founding Order	Thirteenth
Military District	Third
Native Tribe(s) Spanish Name(s)	Costeño
Owner	Roman Catholic Church
Current Use	Chapel / Museum
California Historical Landmark	#233

Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad was founded on October 9, 1791 to minister to the Indians of the Salinas Valley. Governor José Joaquín de Arrillaga was buried in the chapel after he died on July 24, 1814 during a visit to the Mission. Though prosperous in its early years, the Mission declined after 1825. Nevertheless, Father Vicente Francisco Sarría stayed on in poverty to serve the Indians until his death in 1835, when the mission was secularized. The Mission lands were subsequently "regranted" to the Bishop of Monterey in 1859. For over a century after secularization the Mission sat crumbling in the wind and rain. In 1954, when restoration was begun, only piles of adobe dirt and a few wall sections from the cuadrángulo (quadrangle) remained. The chapel was reconstructed and dedicated under the auspices of the Native Daughters of the Golden West in October, 1955. The ruins of the quadrangle, cemetery, and some of the outer rooms can still be seen.

Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad today serves as Nuestra Señora de La Soledad Catholic Church in the parish of Soledad. It is open to visitors, but is not used as a parish church.

1 Notes
2 References
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] Notes

^ Leffingwell, p. 109
^ Yenne, p. 120

[edit] References

Leffingwell, Randy (2005). California Missions and Presidios: The History & Beauty of the Spanish Missions. Voyageur Press, Inc., Stillwater, MN. ISBN 0-89658-492-5.
Yenne, Bill (2004). The Missions of California. Thunder Bay Press, San Diego, CA. ISBN 1-59223-319-8.