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Mission San Francisco

de Asis

By
Dominic Buraglio
• founded October 9, 1776
• 6th Mission founded
• named for Saint Francis of Assisi
• commonly known as “Mission Dolores”
• founded by Father Francisco Palou
• located in the San Francisco Mission
District
Longevity
• only the chapel and
graveyard remain of
the original Mission
complex
• one of only two intact
original Mission
chapels
• oldest original church
building in California
• oldest intact building
http://www.californias-missions.org/individual/mission_san_francisco_de_asis.htm#top
in San Francisco
• survived several earthquakes,
including 1906 quake and fire

The Bancroft Library. University of California, Berkeley Courtesy of Title Insurance & Trust Company by E.A. Cohen
• dioramas inside show
Ohlone village and
Mission from 1791
• original Mission
complex included
dormitories, workshops,
and soldier housing
• all portions of the
Mission complex except
for the chapel and
graveyard were
demolished by 1900
• Dolores Creek was next
to Mission

Both photos by Donald Buraglio


Chapel Construction

The Basics
• adobe chapel started
in 1782 and finished
in 1791
• chapel is 114 ft. long,
22 ft. wide and 21 ft.
tall

Donald Buraglio
The Builder s

• Mission built by
Ohlone Indians
• this model Ohlone hut
is in the Mission
graveyard

Donald Buraglio
Roof
• roof trusses are made
of redwood logs lashed
together with rawhide
http://www.getty.edu/conservation/publications/pdf_publications/seismic_retrofitting.pdf

• chapel originally had a


thatch roof, which was
replaced with tile in
1795
• many tiles in the roof
today are the original
tiles
Donald Buraglio
Ceiling
• the pattern was
taken from the
pattern of Ohlone
baskets
• these Ohlone colors
were made from
vegetable dyes

Donald Buraglio
Foundati on and W all s
• foundation of rock, 4
feet below ground
• walls made of adobe
are 4 feet thick
• over 36,000 bricks
were used
• bricks are now covered
in whitewashed stucco
• Mud or lighter adobe
held bricks together
Donald Buraglio
Donald Buraglio
Building with Adobe
• mud plus sometimes
straw, manure, or hay
were mixed together
to make adobe bricks
• the mixture was then
put in molds and left
outside to dry in the
sun
• adobe bricks don’t
permanently harden,
so they shrink or
expand like a sponge,
Donald Buraglio http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/briefs/brief05.htm

depending on how
much moisture is
around them
Adobe Deterioration
• water - makes adobe
putty-like and can
possibly wash it away
• plants - roots grow into
the adobe bricks,
which causes cracking
• pests - eat the adobe
and make homes in the
walls
• wind - erosion http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/briefs/brief05.htm
Restoration and
Maintenance
• major renovations
were finished in 1917,
1920 and 1995
• roof and walls have
been reinforced with
steel to make them
stronger

C.E. Fennell
Why the mission still
stands today
• earthquake survival –
having thick, relatively
short walls (4 ft. thick, 22
ft. tall), makes it very
stable and hard to knock
down
• general longevity – the
site most likely has good
drainage, which keeps
the adobe dry and stable

http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM17BQ
THE END

Donald Buraglio

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