Carmel Mission

The move

Serra moved the mission from Monterey to the Carmel River in 1771

The mission was first established in Monterey on June 3, 1770, by Junípero Serra. He relocated it to the mouth of the Carmel River, which suited farming better, and it was re-established on August 1, 1771. From 1770 until 1833 it was the headquarters of all Alta California missions.

Stone

Serra chose Carmel as his headquarters, and a stone church followed

Because it was close to Monterey, the government seat, Serra chose Carmel as his headquarters. He is interred beneath the chapel floor. His successor Lasuen replaced the adobe structure with one built of stone quarried from the nearby Santa Lucia Mountains.

Restored

A roof rebuilt in 1884 saved the chapel, and Harry Downie restored the rest

By 1850 the mission was nearly a ruin, and the roof collapsed in 1852. In 1884 Father Angel Casanova gathered private funds to replace the chapel roof. Harry Downie began restoring the mission in 1931 and worked almost daily for nearly 50 years.

The people

The mission population peaked in 1795 and had dwindled to 381 by 1823

The Esselen and Ohlone who lived near the mission were baptized, moved to the mission and became laborers. Disease, starvation, overwork and torture decimated these tribes. The population peaked in 1795 at 876 or 927, but by 1823 the total had dwindled to 381.

381people at the mission by 1823, down from a peak in 1795