Just a few miles north of Paso Robles, in the middle of the Hunter-Liggett Military Base, lies the most remote mission in California. Mission San Antonio de Padua was the 3rd mission build by Father Junipero Serra, the Franciscan priest who founded the first nine of the 21 Spanish missions between San Francisco and San Diego.
A Brief History of the Mission
Father Junipero Serra chose this site specifically because of the large number of Salinan Indians that inhabited the area, whom the Spanish wanted to christianize.
In his zeal to continue north and establish more missions, Padre Junipero Serra hang the church bell on an oak tree. After a short Mass of dedication, he left Padres Buenaventura Sitjar and Miguel Pieras in charge to build the mission. The construction lasted a couple of years (1771-1773).
Between 1801 and 1805 the mission enjoyed a lot of prosperity. There were about 1,300 Indians working on the premises. Some worked in the wool spinning shop, others in the the tannery, the carpenter shop, or at the stables.
In 1834, after taking over California, Mexico decided to end the mission and sell the land. Unfortunately, after the Spanish left, the Indians couldn’t take care of the mission. The value of the property declined so much that no one wanted to buy it. So the Mexican governor sent a Mexican priest to take care of it.
After the priest’s death in 1882 the buildings fell into disrepair again. Over the years, due to heavy rains and earthquakes many of the buildings began to collapse. In 1940, the Franciscan friars returned and began rebuilding the mission with help from the newspaper magnate W.R. Hearst, who owned the nearby Milpitas Ranch.
San Antonio de Padua Mission Today
San Antonio de Padua Mission is a little difficult to access, but it’s really worth visiting. The location is very beautiful, between the pristine hills and vineyards of San Antonio Valley, surrounded by the Santa Lucia Mountains. We visited on a road trip from L.A. to San Francisco.
Over the years, the frequent earthquakes in the area damaged the mission. In 1948 the newspaper magnate W.R. Hearst, who owned the nearby Milpitas Ranch, did some major restorations to it.
The church that stands today dates back to 1813 and was built in the same fashion practiced by the padres 150 years before. The mission’s aspect is altogether simple and humble. Despite the remote location, the church still has mass every Sunday. The parish is composed of about 30 families.
The mission grounds are also simple and modest, but well kept and clean. The interior courtyard has a beautiful flower garden, an old well, grape vines and a 19th century olive tree that is still standing.
There some interesting ruins and burial sites in the back yard. Unlike most missions, Mission San Antonio de Padua runs a retreat center on the premises. All the rooms face the courtyard and can be rented for a reasonable price; most of them share a bathroom, but there are a couple of suites that have their own bathrooms.
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Tips for Visiting San Antonio de Padua Mission
Currently, the mission is going through a seismic retrofitting. The complex is still open for services and visitation, but some of the walls are covered in scaffolding, fences, and tarps.
Admission is free, but there is a $5/person suggested donation. Mission San Antonio de Padua has a very nice gift shop that also sells refreshments.
Other beautiful missions build by Father Junipero Serra in California include the Carmel Mission, next to Monterey and Santa Barbara Mission.
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Linda Bibb
Not being familiar with any of California’s missions (just that there are some), I appreciated reading about this one and seeing your photos. It sounds as though William Randolph Hearst appreciated the mission and saw its value. He certainly made it look beautiful.
I am reminded of the Bible passage “But you, doing acts of charity, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.” Maybe that was good for Hearst’s soul, but as for myself, I love to hear about times when people of wealth use their money for good. I find it very inspiring.
Anda Galffy
I agree with you, Linda. Fortunately, our nation still has good, charitable people today.
Jesper, The Biveros Effect
Nice photos, it really looks like a peaceful place 🙂
Cathy
Your photos always bring me right there. I love that you explore the hard to reach places:)
Ruth - Tanama Tales
Anda, this is fabulous. I have not visited this Mission yet. I have read is one of the few missions were you can get the feeling of how everything was close to the foundation period (since there are no other major structures around it). If you are interested in Mission history, it would be could if you could visit the one close to Tucson in the area. There is another mission (Tumacacori) south of Tucson. That one is interesting two (I have not posted about it yet).
Anda Galffy
I’d love to see the missions in Tucson, Ruth. Thanks for the tip.
Antonio
San Antonio de Padua? He’s my Saint!
Congratulations for your interesting blog and photos posted.
many regards
Ahila
Enjoyed reading about Mission San Antonio de Padua.
Rhonda Albom
I love the look of it. It reminds me of some of the small villages we saw in Costa Brava Spain. Once the retrofit is complete will the rooms available for anyone, or only retreat groups?
Anda Galffy
The retreat is available even now, while the building is being retrofitted.
Michelle | michwanderlust
It’s always great to see old buildings being taken care of in this manner, even when (I assume) there isn’t much money to be made from it. Profit isn’t everything, and the value of heritage is intangible. Thanks for sharing, Anda!
Cat
The ranch was golden and so beautiful! The church has that historic feeling to it! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Clare (Suitcases and Sandcastles)
Looks like a really interesting place to visit – and stay. Thanks for the historical guide and great photos.