Mission San Diego de Alcalá

Pieta (modern, found on site), descriptive background; Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá, in San Diego was the first Franciscan mission in the Alta California region of New Spain. It was founded in 1769 by Spanish friar Junípero Serra in an area long inhabited by the Kumeyaay Indians. The mission and the surrounding area were named for the Catholic Saint Didacus, a Spaniard more commonly known as San Diego. The mission was the site of the first Christian burial in Alta California. The current church is the fourth to stand on this location. The Mission is a National Historic Landmark. The mission was constructed of adobe in a quadrangular configuration with an open courtyard, it (and the Presidio Real) was the first permanent structure; the church (1808-1813) and Presidio chapel were furnished with religious paintings and sculptures brought from Mexico. Adobe remained the primary building material until the settlement’s capture by the USA in 1846 and California’s achievement of American statehood in 1850. Source: Wikipedia; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page (accessed 7/18/2010