Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad
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Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad (originally La Misión de María Santísima, Nuestra Señora Dolorosísima de la Soledad) was founded on October 9, 1791 by Father Fermín Francisco de Lasuén, the thirteenth in the California mission chain, to minister to the Indians of the Salinas Valley. It was named for Sacred Mary, "Our Most Sorrowful Lady of Solitude" and is located in the small town of Soledad, California within what was the Third Military District.
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.
Historic designations
References
See also
- Spanish missions in California
- USNS Mission Soledad (AO-136) — a ''Buenaventura Class fleet oiler built during World War II.
External links
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