Mission San Carlos Borroméo de Carmelo

No state plaque stands here. The only cast text is on a memorial wall the Carmel Mission Foundation raised in the courtyard in 2011 as the centerpiece of its restoration campaign; five of its seven plaques thank donors, and the two transcribed here tell Serra's life. The second speaks twice of the mission's natives and never names them. They were Rumsen Ohlone and Esselen. Isabel Meadows, whose mother was born at this mission in 1818, carried the Rumsen language into the 1930s and worked on it with the Smithsonian's John P. Harrington until her death in 1939.

What the plaque says

Junípero Serra Junípero Serra played a decisive role in the European settlement of the New World. He was born Miguel José Serra in Petra on the Mediterranean island of Mallorca on November 24, 1713. Though not an assuming figure and plagued by ill health much of his adult life, he brought Christianity and Spanish culture to California. The first half of his life was spent in Mallorca; the second half was dedicated to developing missions and administering to native peoples in remote regions of New Spain (later Mexico) including Sierra Gorda, Baja California and Alta California (today the State of California). Bright, earnest and deeply religious at an early age, he chose to become a Franciscan, adopting the name of Junípero after an ardent disciple of St. Francis of Assisi who founded the Franciscans. Serra was ordained a priest shortly before Christmas, 1737. He earned his doctorate in sacred theology at Lullian University in Mallorca's capital of Palma and in 1743 was named to the chair of theology. Two of his students, Francisco Palóu and Juan Crespí, became lifelong associates in Serra's missionary work. Junípero Serra long dreamed of going to the New World as a missionary in 1749 Fray Serra, now 36, began the treacherous journey across the sea to New Spain and for the next 19 years dedicated himself to missionary work in Mexico. Between 1750 and 1758 he revitalized five missions in the Sierra Gorda region. In 1767 the Franciscans were asked to take over the 13 missions in Baja California. Serra was appointed padre-presidente and while there founded Misión San Fernando Rey de España de Velicatá. In 1768 Don José de Gálvez, the visitador-general of New Spain, was planning a land and sea expedition to settle Alta California, and Serra was selected to be founder and president of the Alta California missions. Establishing the California Missions Joining the expedition led by Don Gaspar de Portolá, Serra arrived in San Diego in 1769 and established the first Alta California mission. In 1770 the parties set out for Monterey Bay where the central settlement of Alta California and the second mission was temporarily located. He moved the mission in 1771 to the Carmel River, six miles to the south, in order to benefit the natives and to take advantage of better water and agricultural conditions. The Carmel Mission (Mission San Carlos Borroméo del Rio Carmelo) became the headquarters for the California mission system and is now designated a National Historic Landmark. From here personnel and supplies were sent throughout Alta California, ultimately supporting 21 missions. Between 1769 and 1782 Fray Serra founded the first nine missions in Alta California: San Diego de Alcalá, San Carlos Borroméo del Rio Carmelo, San Antonio de Padua, San Gabriel Arcángel, San Luis Obispo de Tolosa San Francisco de Asís, San Juan Capistrano, Santa Clara de Asís and San Buenaventura. The remaining missions were founded under the guidance of Fray Fermín Francisco de Lasuén and his successors. By the end of 1783 the missions had attained a level of self-sufficiency that Serra had envisioned years earlier. Fray Junípero Serra overcame political and physical adversity with his dedication and sustaining faith, and left as his legacy the foundation of California. This devoted and selfless missionary died at the Carmel Mission on August 28, 1784 at the age of 70. The natives mourned the loss of their beloved Fray Serra. His body rests under the Carmel Mission Basilica's main altar. Honoring him is a cenotaph in the Mora Chapel adjacent to the Basilica and this Serra Memorial Wall. A statue of Blessed Junípero Serra, one of the giants of California history, stands in Statuary Hall in our nation's Capitol Building.

Where it stands

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