Mission San Juan Capistrano

Mission San Juan Capistrano. . Mission San Juan Capistrano, originally founded in East Texas in 1716, was reestablished here on the east bank of the San Antonio River in 1731. The mission community prospered in spite of its remote location, far from the Presidio of San Antonio de Bexar. Native Americans who came to live here were taught both Christianity and a different way of life that included farming. The walled mission compound protected the church and living quarters, and crops were grown on rich surrounding farmlands (labores) using water channeled from the nearby river through hand-dug ditches (acequias). Surplus food was sold or traded to other missions and settlements., San Juan was converted from a religious to a civil community beginning in the 1790s in a process known as secularization. The living quarters and farmlands were distributed among Native American residents, while the Catholic Church retained the chapel and convento. Area residents, some descended from early mission families, continued to live and farm here. Mission San Juan deteriorated throughout the 1800s and early 1900s. Finally, in the 1960s, work was begun to stabilize and repair the mission walls and surrounding structures, and in 2013 the mission church was completely restored., Captions , Upper Left: Mission San Juan Capistrano, established on this site in 1731, was painted by Théodore Gentilz in the late 1800s. At its earlier location in East Texas, the mission was named San José de los Nazonis for the Indian tribe it served. , Courtesy: Daughters of the Republic of Texas at the Alamo. , Lower Left: This detail from Luis Antonio Menchaca's 1764 map of San Antonio de Bexar and five Spanish missions illustrates San Juan, its acequia, and irrigated fields where corn, chilies, squash, melons, sugar cane and other crops were grown. Nearby Mission Espada can be seen on the opposite side of the river. Today a demonstration farm is operated on San Juan's original agricultural land. , Courtesy: John Carter Brown Library, Brown University, Providence, R.I., Lower Middle: Mission San Juan, together with Missions Concepción, San José and Espada, remains an active parish of the Archdiocese of San Antonio. The children of the parish gathered for a group picture in front of the church in the 1940s. , Courtesy: University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections. , Lower Right: Local residents and visitors have been fascinated with the architecture and history of San Antonio's missions since the 1800s. Two well-dressed tourists had their picture taken while exploring the San Juan ruins in about 1911. , Courtesy: University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections. ,