Also known as Mission Dolores, this was the 6th mission to be established under Father Serra. Although the formal establishment of this mission was
not until the arrival of necessary church documents (They even had red-tape back then!) on Oct. 9th, 1776, Father Francisco Palou, a co-worker of Father Serra, arrived on June 27th, 1776. He held the first Mass under a makeshift shelter two days later, on June 29th, 1776, thereby giving the City of Saint Francis its official recorded beginning five full days before the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

The church that towers directly next door was built there after the 1906 earthquake devastated the parish church. (Almost intriguing that the mission with its' dirt walls did not crumble...) The huge structure that stands there now was finished in 1918 & after a visit from Pope Pius XII, it was given the status of Basilica; Honourary Church of the Pope. (altho I have some shots of that, I am not going to post them here. Yes, they are related, but right now I'd like to focus on the simpler styles of the mission. Enjoy the short tour of Mission Dolores. For more shots, see David's Gallery.