California Historical Society Collection, 1860-1960

Title Insurance and Trust and C.C. Pierce Photography Collection 1860-1960

Statue of Father Junipero Serra as monument at Mission San Juan Capistrano, 1929

(USC DC Image)

Statue of Father Junipero Serra as monument at Mission San Juan Capistrano, 1929

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Photograph of a statue of Father Junipero Serra as monument at Mission San Juan Capistrano, 1929. His right arm is raised in the air while his left encircles the shoulder of a small Indian. The statue is on top of a tall stone pedestal located in a garden. Benches are visible behind the foliage at right. Further back are the buildings of the mission. Father Junipero Serra (Miguel Jose Serra) was one of the most important Spanish missionaries in the New World. Born in Majorca on November 24, 1713, he joined the Franciscan Order at the age of 16. He soon gained prominence as an eloquent preacher and eventually became a professor of theology. His dream was to become a missionary to America. He arrived in Mexico City in 1750 to begin this new life. In 1769 he established a mission at the present site of San Diego, California, the first of a number that would include San Antonio, San Buenaventura, San Carlos, San Francisco de Assisi, San Gabriel, San Juan Capistrano, San Luis Obispo, and Santa Clara. This was a herculean task considering that Father Serra was already in his fifties and suffered from a chronic ulcerated condition in one leg. Serra was ascetic and uncompromising in his zeal to convert the Indians to Christianity and to make his missions self sufficient. Inhabitants built their own homes, spun wool for garments, and pursued careers as masons, carpenters, blacksmiths, and millers; thousands of barrels of grain were kept in reserve supply, and herds of cattle, sheep, horses, and swine were maintained. The ulcerated condition of Serra's leg eventually spread to his chest. At the age of 71, aware of his deterioration, he made a final visit to his missions. The well-known and beloved missionary died in Monterey, California, on August 28, 1784; his missions continued to flourish for another 50 years (according to Architect of the Capitol, Office of the Curator).

Asset Metadata

Title Statue of Father Junipero Serra as monument at Mission San Juan Capistrano, 1929

Subject Mission San Juan Capistrano (file heading), Missions, Spanish (lcsh), Priests (lcsh), religious facilities (adlf), San Juan Capistrano Mission (subject), Serra, Junipero (file heading), Serra, Junípero, 1713-1784 (naf)

Tags OAI-PMH Harvest

Place California (states), Orange (counties), San Juan Capistrano (city or populated place), USA (countries)

Temporal Subject 1929

Type images

Format 4 photographs : photonegative, photoprints, b&w ; 20 x 25 cm. (aacr2), negatives (photographic) (aat), photographic prints (aat), photographs (aat)

Source California Historical Society (contributing entity), California Historical Society Collection, 1860-1960 (collection), Title Insurance and Trust, and C.C. Pierce Photography Collection, 1860-1960 (subcollection)

Date Created 1929

Creator Bickford (photographer)

Publisher University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Repository Email specol@lib.usc.edu

Repository Name USC Libraries Special Collections

Repository Location Doheny Memorial Library, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189

Rights Public Domain. Please credit both “University of Southern California. Libraries” and “California Historical Society” as the source. Digitally reproduced by the USC Digital Library.

Copyright Public Domain. Please credit both “University of Southern California. Libraries” and “California Historical Society” as the source. Digitally reproduced by the USC Digital Library.

Access Conditions Send requests to address or e-mail given

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/chs-m15326

Identifier 2124 (accession number), CHS-2124 (call number), CHS-2124 (filename), chs-m265 (legacy collection record id), chs-c65-14528 (legacy record id), chs-m15326 (legacy record id), USC-1-1-1-13962 (legacy record id), USC-1-1-1-14088 (legacy record id), 1-137-74 (microfiche number), USC (project)

IIIF ID [Document.IIIFV3ID]

DM Record ID 14528

Unique identifier UC143670

Legacy Identifier CHS-2124.tiff

Type Image

Internet Media Type image/tiff

Resolution 17.9 in × 13.9 in at 300dpi
45.6 cm × 35.3 cm at 300dpi

Inherited Values

Title Title Insurance and Trust and C.C. Pierce Photography Collection 1860-1960

Description The nearly 15,000 unique photographs of this collection contain the work of C.C. Pierce which cover the Los Angeles region city, street and architectural views, California Missions, Southwestern Native Americans, and turn-of-century Nevada, Arizona, and California. Pierce, active from 1886 to 1940, was one of the leading photographers of his day and amassed a collection of 15,000 images, including his own and those bought and copied from his contemporaries, George Wharton James and Charles Puck. The James collection contains over 2,000 images of portraits, customs, ceremonies, arts, and games of various groups of Southwestern Native Americans.

Date Created 1860/1960

Linked assets

Title Insurance and Trust and C.C. Pierce Photography Collection 1860-1960

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Father Junipero Serra, [s.d.]

Engraving of a portrait of Father Junipero Serra, [s.d.]

Don Pedro Verugo (a caretaker?) examining "the door to Father Serra's church" at the Mission San Juan Capistrano, Orange County, 1885

Bell tower or campanario of Mission San Juan Capistrano, 1929

Exterior view of Mission San Juan Capistrano from the north side, showing the south end of Father Serra's church (built 1777), Orange County, ca.1900

Statue of Saint Dominic at Mission San Juan Capistrano, ca.1907

Interior of chapel at the Mission San Juan Capistrano, ca.1899

Junipero Serra's statue in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, [s.d.]

Don Pedro Verdugo's wife in choir window of old church at the San Juan Capistrano Mission, 1899

Ruined arches at the Mission San Juan Capistrano, 1899

San Juan Capistrano Mission cloisters and court, ca.1899

Mission San Juan Capistrano bell "San Vicente", ca.1902

View of the ruined corridor (or arcade?) at Mission San Juan Capistrano, Orange County, California, 1885

Nino Majel standing beside a carillon wheel at Mission San Juan Capistrano, California, ca.1905

Portrait of patrons in front of Junipero Serra's statue during its unveiling, San Francisco, November 17, 1907

Ruined arches of Mission San Juan Capistrano, ca.1887

View of the "triple arch and ruined tower" of the stone church at Mission San Juan Capistrano, Orange County, ca.1887

Ruin of the church and altar at Mission San Juan Capistrano, 1901

Four statues of saints needing repair at Mission San Juan Capistrano, ca.1900

Central courtyard of the Mission San Juan Capistrano, showing crumbling arches, ca.1895

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