Mission Santa Ines

Santa Ines Mission was the nineteenth one built in California, founded September 17, 1804, by Father Estevan Tapis.

Interesting Facts

Santa Ines was the last mission to be built in Southern California and was the home of California's first seminary college.

1804 - 1820

Father Estevan Tapis and Captain Felipe de Goycoechea surveyed sites in the mission's area in 1798. They recommended the place the local Indians called Alajupapu, but changes in Spanish governors and Catholic leadership caused delays.

Finally, Father Tapis founded Santa Ines Mission on September 17, 1804, naming it for Saint Agnes. Two hundred Chumash Indians attended the first mass, and 23 were baptized.

The first priests were Father Jose Rumualdo Gutierrez and Jose Antonio Calzada. By the end of 1804, they reported 112 converts, and there was constant construction in the early years.

By 1812, the complex was well built. Then, on December 21, 1812, two earthquakes struck. It took more than four years to repair the damage. In 1817, the mission produced 4,160 bushels of wheat; 4,330 bushels of corn and 300 bushels of beans. Records listed 1,030 converts; 287 marriages, and 611 deaths and its largest-ever population of 920.

Father Uria was in charge into the early 1820s. Building continued into the early 1820s when the church murals were painted.

1820 - 1830's

When Mexico won independence from Spain, they had little money to support the missions. Soldiers were forced to get their supplies from the missions and pay with IOUs. They got no salary and became frustrated until their anger came out toward the Indians.

In 1824, a Spanish guard beat a Purisima Indian. That set off a revolt that spread to all the Santa Barbara area missions. At Santa Ines, two Indians were killed, buildings were burned, and the priests were taken hostage. The Indians burned the soldiers' quarters, but not the Fathers'. When the fire threatened the church, they stopped fighting and helped put the fire out.

Secularization

After secularization in 1834, the Fathers kept the mission running for a while by selling its cattle, tallow, hides, and grain. Eventually, the Indians lost interest and drifted away.

In 1843, Governor Manuel Micheltorena granted part of the land to Francisco Garcia Diego y Moreno, first Bishop of California. He used it to create the first seminary in California, College of Our Lady of Refuge. The college later moved near Santa Ynez, where it stayed open until 1881.

The next Mexican Governor, Pio Pico, illegally sold Santa Ines Mission to Jose M. Covarrubias and Jose Joaquin Carrillo for $7,000 just weeks before the United States took California over from Mexico. The United States revoked the sale in 1851 and returned the mission to the church.

The mission was never entirely abandoned, but the buildings fell into disrepair. Finally, in July 1904, Father Alexander Buckler was put in charge. He and his niece Mary Goulet spent 20 years restoring it and preserving its artwork and fabrics.

When Father Buckler retired in 1924, the church was offered back to the Franciscans, and Franciscan Capuchin fathers from Ireland took over. They modernized the buildings to make them livable. A full restoration began in 1947, returning the buildings to the way they were before the 1812 earthquake.

In 1989, a multi-million dollar project reconstructed eight of the 19 arches on the eastern facade and restored the east wing.

Santa Ines Mission is now an active parish church with regular services.