La Purisima Mission
"Escape From Life," Friday, January 19, 2007. My visit to the California Missions was not really on the agenda when I left the Bay Area on my trip. In fact, nothing was really on the agenda, save the taping of a TV show at Warner Brothers on Friday afternoon. Other than that, though, I was just going to take my time and enjoy the drive down the Pacific Coast Highway. Because I left Monterey at 7 a.m. on Friday morning, I was well ahead of schedule come about 11 a.m. I found myself getting very close to Lompoc, CA, which was only about 2.5 hours from where I needed to be by 3:30 p.m. As I was approaching Lompoc, I saw a sign for La Purisima Mission State Park. Being that I was so ahead of schedule, I decided that I would stop there. After all, I had the luxury of being alone with time to spare, so I could do pretty much whatever I wanted.
Now, unlike the other Missions that I visited on the way back to San Francsico, La Purisima is situated in what is now a state park. As such, I didn't have to pay to visit the Mission itself, but I did have to pay a "daily use fee" to get into the park. Only $4, which is pretty close to the average price to visit any of the other Missions, so I wasn't too put off by having to pay it. Like Mission San Anotonio de Padua, La Purisima is situated in a very natural setting, surrounded by vast expanses of land. However, whereas San Antonio's surrounding land belongs in large part to the US Military, the park at La Purisima is yours for the exploring with horse trails, bike trails and hiking trails. I took advantage of one such short hiking trail (photo above).
Founded in 1787 by Franciscan Padre Presidente Fermin Francisco Lasuen, the Mission itself is was very interesting to explore. Aside from a passing visit to the Mission in Sonoma while wine tasting two years ago, I had never been to any of the California Missions, so I wasn't really sure what to expect. Now, while founded in 1787, this Mission suffered many setbacks. From 1804-1807, disease killed a quarter of the Mission population, mostly Indians, and the Mission was almost entirely destroyed during a series of earthquakes in December of 1812. Following this, the Mission was relocated to its present site, but more hardship led to the eventual abandonment of the site in 1845. By 1934, the Mission was unrecognizable. In 1939, a complete rebuild of the Mission began, headed up by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The goal during the restoration was to create a sense for visitors that they had ventured back in time to the early 1800s. The Mission buildings have been beautifully restored and many interior rooms have been decorated with original furniture and tools.
One such tool that has been preserved and displayed is the loom pictured on the left. The Missions were more than just "Catholic recruitment centers." In fact, they were far more than that. The goal of the Missions was to create a community of people, including indigenous peoples. The missions were staffed by some priests, but also included candlemakers, weavers, military, teachers, chefs, ceramic workers, farmers, ranchers, and so on. At most of the California Missions, Native Americans were educated and taught to speak Spanish (remember, these were Spanish Missions). The brightest students were taught to read and write, as well. The Mission tries to recreate the lifestyle for visitors on Special Mission Weekends. On these weekends, volunteers dress in period costumes and take over the Mission, recreating a typical day in the Mission life. It would be fun to see this sometime, I think.