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Brought to you by...

• The Library of Congress
• National Endowment for the Humanities
• National Gallery of Art
• National Park Service
• Smithsonian Institution
• United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
• U.S. National Archives and Records Administration

The Library of Congress, National Park Service and Historic American Buildings Survey unite in celebrating the achievements and contributions of Hispanic Americans and their indelible mark on our nation's society and history. The Spanish missionary enterprise that flourished in Texas and California in the 18th century grew out of a rich tradition that had evolved over centuries of conquest and colonization. As ordered by the Spanish crown, these missions, primarily staffed by the Franciscan Order, were tasked with converting the indigenous peoples of the area to Christianity.

Visit the Missions

Mission Church at Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, CA, 1866	Mission San Antonio de Valero (The Alamo) San Antonio, TX, After 1933	Mission San José Alameda County, CA c.1866
Mission San Jose y San Miguel de Aguayo: Church San Antonio, TX After 1933	Mission San Juan: Old Spanish Bells Monterey County, CA 1866	Mission San Juan de Capistrano San Antonio, TX After 1933
Mission Santa Clara: First Site Santa Clara, CA c.1907	Mission Senora de la Purisima Concepcion: Church San Antonio, TX After 1933

Read Early Books About the Missions

These digitized books draw attention to California history, extolling the state's claims to America's past. The advent of railroads and automobiles made California a destination for tourists and settlers. Through photos and sketches of 18th and 19th century Franciscan missions, the titles presented prove these sites worthy of a traveler's time.

• California Missions
  E.H. Mitchell (Publisher), 1908?
• California Missions and Landmarks and How to Get There
  Mrs. A.S.C. Forbes, 1903
• California's Mission Tour: A Motoring Guide with Maps and Sketches
  Automobile Club of Southern California (Publisher), 1915
• The Famous Missions of California
  William H. Hudson, with sketches in color by W.H. Bull and many other illustrations, 1901
• Missions of California
  Maj. Ben. C. Truman, 1903
• The Missions of Nueva California: An Historical Sketch
  Charles Franklin Carter, 1900
• The Old Missions
  Chas. F. Lummis & Company (Publisher) , 1888
• Old Missions of Southern California
  Fannie E. Duvall, 1897
• The Old Spanish Missions of California: An Historical and Descriptive Sketch
  Paul Elder, 1913

Related Resources from the Library of Congress and the National Park Service:

• The California Missions
• Early History of the California Coast (National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Travel Itinerary)
• San Antonio Missions (National Park Service Web Site)
• Father Eusebio Kino (Explorer, Cartographer, and Founder of Numerous Missions)
• Francisco Vásquez de Coronado (Explorer)
• Juan de Oñate (Explorer and Founder of First European Settlements in New Mexico's upper Rio Grande Valley)