Missions of Los Angeles

After establishing the settlement of San Francisco, visionary mission president Fr. Junipero Serra journeyed south to found Mission San Juan Capistrano, Alta California’s seventh, on November 1, 1776. By order of King Carlos III of Spain, El Pueblo de la Reina de los Angeles (the Town of Our Lady the Queen of the Angels) was founded on September 4, 1781, following the recommendation of the first California governor, Felipe de Neve. At nearby Mission San Gabriel Arcangel, de Neve gathered a group of 11 men, 11 women, and 22 children, soldiers, mission priests, and a few Indians and traveled nine miles to the banks of the Los Angeles River, blessing the new site. By 1800, the city of Los Angeles had a population of 300 with a meeting hall, guardhouse, army barracks, and granary. Built a day’s journey apart on El Camino Real, the Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana was dedicated on September 8, 1797, and completed the lineage of California’s monumental landmark missions near Los Angeles.