NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Mission San Rafael Arcángel

Mission San Rafael Arcángel was founded on December 14, 1817 by Father Vicente de Sarría. It was the twentieth in the California mission chain, and was named for the Archangel Raphael. It is located in San Rafael, California, in Marin County. The Mission was started as an asistencia ("sub-mission" or branch) of the Mission San Francisco de Asís as a hospital to treat sick Indians. The weather was much better in the North Bay, and helped the ill to get better. It was never intended to be a full mission, but nevertheless grew it was granted full mission status on October 19, 1822. Likewise, Mission San Francisco Solano was intended to be an adjunct of Mission San Rafael but developed into a full-blown mission. December is the twelfth and last month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... December 14 is the 348th day of the year (349th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Events March 4 - James Monroe succeeds James Madison as the President of the United States of America April – Earthquake in Palermo, Italy April 3 – Princess Caraboo appears in Almondsbury in Gloucestershire, England May - The General Convention of the Episcopal Church founded General Theological Seminary while meeting in New York City. ... State nickname: The Golden State Other U.S. States Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Official languages English Area 410,000 km² (3rd) - Land 404,298 km² - Water 20,047 km² (4. ... Archangel can mean several things: 1. ... Raphael (Heb. ... San Rafael is the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. ... Marin County is a county located in Californias San Francisco Bay Area, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. ... A view of Mission Dolores on a rain-soaked San Francisco day in December 2004. ... Indian or Indians can refer to: Anything from or related to the country of India, including: The people of India, sometimes called Asian Indians to differentiate from American Indians The many languages of India The Indian subcontinent or the adjoining Indian Ocean Native Americans, the aboriginal people of the Americas... North Bay, Ontario North Bay (California) is a subregion of the San Francisco Bay Area This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... October 19 is the 291st day of the year (292nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Events March 30 - Florida becomes a United States territory. ... Mission San Francisco Solano was founded on July 4, 1823 by Father Jose Altimira, the twenty-first and last of the California mission chain. ...

Mission San Rafael Arcángel was one of the first missions turned over to the Mexican government in 1833. In 1840, there were 150 Indians still at the mission. By 1844, Mission San Rafael Arcángel was left abandoned. What was left of the empty buildings was sold for $8,000 in 1846. The Mission was used by John C. Fremont as his headquarters during the battles to make California a United States possession (see Bear Flag Revolt). In 1847, a priest was once again living at the Mission. A new parish church was built near the old chapel ruins in 1861, and in 1870 the rest of the ruins were removed to make room for the City of San Rafael. All that was left of the Mission was a single pear tree from the old Mission's orchard. In 1949, Monsignor Thomas Kennedy rebuilt and restored the chapel. The United Mexican States or Mexico (Spanish: Estados Unidos Mexicanos or México; regarding the use of the variant spelling Méjico, see section The name below) is a country located in North America, bordered to the north by the United States of America, to the southeast by Guatemala and Belize, to... Events January 3, Britain seizes control of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. ... 1840 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Events January 15 - University of Notre Dame receives its charter from Indiana. ... 1846 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... John C. Frémont John Charles Frémont (January 21, 1813-July 13, 1890), birth name John Charles Fremon [Harvey, p. ... The United States of America — also referred to as the United States, the U.S.A., the U.S., America, the States, or (archaically) Columbia—is a federal republic of 50 states located primarily in central North America (with the exception of two states: Alaska and Hawaii). ... The first Bear Flag. ... Events January January 4 - Samuel Colt sells his first revolver pistol to the United States government. ... A parish is a subdivision of a diocese or bishopric within the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Church of Sweden, and of some other churches. ... 1861 is a common year starting on Tuesday. ... 1870 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... 1949 is a common year starting on Saturday. ...

Today the Mission San Rafael Arcángel sits next to the parish church of Saint Raphael on the site of the original hospital. It is open to visitors and has a small museum and gift shop.

Historic designations

California Historic Landmark #220

External links

Official mission & parish website (http://www.saintraphael.com/history.html/)
Elevation & Site Layout sketches of the Mission proper (http://www.mymission.org/images/rafael.gif)

Categories: California missions | Tourist attractions in California | Marin County, California

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