La Purisima
Mission Santa Inéz was founded to convert the Indians who lived east of the Coast Range. The Mission not only suffered from earthquakes but also from an Indian uprising. Today it has been restored to its former grandeur. Its campanile with its three bells reminds one of Mission San Gabriel. In its museum is a collection of old vestments and books.
Nothing remained of Mission La Purísima Conceptión but a few crumbling arches, till it was taken over by the state. Today it stands in all its former glory, faithfully restored in every detail. The Mission site was made a State park and the restoration carried out by the Civilian Conservation Corps. Purísima stands as a monument to a nation’s industry, but lacks the peaceful state of religious tranquility found in the other missions.
Restored Interior, La Purisima
Detail at end of Cloister La Purisima
San Luis Obispo
It was at Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa that tile was first manufactured. The buildings have lost much of their Spanish atmosphere, but the interior is in a fair state of restoration. It is now the active Catholic Church of the city which was named after it. A few miles from San Luis Obispo is the Asistencia of Santa Margarita, unique in that the entire ruins have been covered over by a large hay barn. Horses and cattle quietly munch their hay through the arched window openings.