San Miguel Arcangel (California Missions Series)

I have actually visited this mission twice. The first time I was unable to get inside because the church suffered damage from the quake that shook the place a few months prior to our visit. This second time, November 2010, I saw that the temporary fence placed around the facade of the church was no longer there, but we were just swinging by on the way home from a short holiday in the Central Coast.

Located on Old Highway 101 in San Miguel, 9 miles from Paso Robles, halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

CHRONOLOGY
1777 - July 25, founded by Padre-Presidente Lasuen, 16th mission, named for St. Michael, the Archangel.

1818 - Present church completed.

1821 - Decoration finished.

1834 - Last mission to be secularized.

1845 - Sold.

1859 - Returned to the church.

1901 - and 1928 - Main buildings renovated.

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The original campanario still in use.

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No more cracks in the facade.

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The corridor.

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Going in.

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View from inside looking out.

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The courtyard and fountain. The fountain was not part of the original mission architecture and is a concrete copy of one at Santa Barbara.
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Fray Junipero Serra.
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The cemetery.
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A little prayer/altar area by the courtyard
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This would be my entry for this week's MY WORLD.

Comments

  1. Wonderful photos. I'm fascinated by the architecture and the history.

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  2. Ewok - sorry to comment as anon but I can't leave a comment otherwise due to the embedded comments format.

    I love California and I hope to see more of the state in the future. Thanks for a glimpse at the missions. I so want to visit a few on a future trip to CA.

    Gina
    a.k.a Pagan Sphinx

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  3. Thanks for sharing this beautiful mission with us. I really enjoyed your photos.

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  4. Cameras in the restrooms too?

    Wonderful visit. Really enjoyable to see all those beautiful structures.

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  5. I do love those old California missions! Your photos and history are terrific! Haven't been to one of them in a long time, your post/photos are the next best thing.!

    Sylvia

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  6. The architecture is so very different where you are. Your pictures give a good feel of the place.

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  7. Ha, ha … glad you included the all important restroom. Your broad-view captures give a great sense of the atmosphere and the evolution of a building. I love when bricks show through broken plaster and the bells are beautiful. I wonder if they are now artifacts or sometimes ring for passersby.

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  8. This is so Spanish Colonial, love it! All photos are great.

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  9. Very nice photos. I love old missions like this, this one looks beautiful.

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  10. Please grow the callas. if your weather suits, you just grow them once, and never have to take care of them again.

    Brides like crimson red, florist like yellow, but I like white.

    If you grow yours, and I happen to walk past, you would have to shoo me away for taking photos.

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  11. I like such old structures and the atmosphere around them. Great shots.

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  12. I loved looking at your pictures today over and over again. Having been educated by Dominican nuns, I enjoy any old Catholic sites. This one is beautiful. The architecture is so interesting. Nice photography.

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  13. wow, these are just wonderful photos... thanks for sharing..

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  14. This is much more elaborate then San Francisco Solano. It's quite a contrast.
    Nice photos, it makes me want to visit.

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  15. Such lovely photos of a stunning place!

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  16. The very distinct bells in every mission. Maybe a visit someday if traveling to SFO in the future.

    The weather was beautiful when you visited. Nice captures!

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  17. Thanks for the tour. I love the aura of Europe around the buildings. I especially like the campanario. The word Fray reminds me of Noli Me Tangere :)

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  18. oopps, im actually hoping to see a statue of san miguel. curious lang, how he looks like in california. hehe

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  19. great series of pictures. the steeple looks gorgeous against the sky and great perspective of the corridor.

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  20. wow! baroque and iconic. my type of church where the rustic pilars and walls are really beautiful. im quite impressed at how they preserved it.

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  21. You did an excellent job of showing us this place. Fine individual shot with a very good variety of viewpoints and subjects. It would be hard to pick a favorite among so many good ones.

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  22. Wow this project is great, your architectures sandwiched by people photos. How lovely it is to do these things, i love all your photos! However, i forgot if you are also ewok. thanks.

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  23. Another postcard perfect series of photos! I love the feel of summer in classic settings like this.

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  24. That's a great photo essay. (I'd missed this posts before somehow, so thanks for the link on your other blog.) There's a Franciscan mission in Tucson AZ known as the "White Dove of the Desert" that these pictures very much remind me of. They used the same architect I think ;>)..we love to visit these places. The one in AZ is still in use.

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  25. i like the rustic feel of the fotos.
    its architecture are just amazing, esp its details. ^0^

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  26. Very nice sequence of photos of the splendid Mission. I like so much your Mission series!

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  27. nice host. great piece of Mexican architecture.

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