Mission San Francisco de Asís, also known as Mission Dolores, was founded on October 9, 1776. It was the sixth California mission, founded by Father Francisco Palou (a member of the Anza Expedition ). It is located in San Francisco, and received the nickname "Mission Dolores" from the nearby Lago de los Dolores ("Lake of the Sorrows"), now vanished. It was named for St. Francis of Assisi, the founder of the Franciscan Order. The buildings have remained relatively unchanged since their construction in 1782.

In 1817, Mission San Rafael Arcángel was established as an asistencia to act as a hospital for the Mission, though it would later be granted full mission status in 1822.

After the California Gold Rush began in 1848, the City of San Francisco had grown tremendously; there were saloons and two race tracks on the mission property. During the 1906 earthquake, the basilica next to the mission church fell and was destroyed, but the Mission San Francisco de Asís remained unharmed.

The Mission is still an active church in "The City." Many people attend services in the Mission church and even more attend mass in the Basilica next door. The Mission is open to visitors.

The Mission District is now the name of the San Francisco neighborhood adjacent to church. It was one of the few areas of San Francisco not destroyed by the fires that sprang up in the aftermath of the 1906 'quake.

Historic designations

• National Register of Historic Places #NPS-72000251
• California Historic Landmark #327-1
• California Historic Landmark #393 - "The Hospice" (an outpost of Mission Dolores in San Mateo)

See also

• California mission
• Mission San Rafael Arcángel

External links

• Official mission website
• Elevation & Site Layout sketches of the Mission proper