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Mission San Antonio de Padua was founded July 14th 1771 (3rd in order of missions) by Blessed Junípero Serra. The mission is named for Saint Anthony. The Indian name was Teshhaya, or Sextapay. The mission is largely restored from the rebuilt original. The current site is about three miles from the original mission. The church is active (The Mission was not damaged in the December 2003 earthquake).
Mission San Antonio de Padua was founded on July 14, 1771, the third mission founded in Alta California by Father Presidente Junípero Serra, and site of the first Christian marriage and first use of fired tile roofing in Upper California.[3] Father Serra left Fathers Miguel Pieras and Buenaventura Sitjar behind to continue the building efforts, though the construction of the church proper did not actually begin until 1810. By that time, there were 178 Native Americans living at the Mission.
By 1805, the number had increased to 1,300, but in 1834, after the secularization laws went into effect, the total number of Native Americans at the Mission was only 150.
No town grew up around the Mission, as many did at other installations. Today, the nearest city is King City, nearly 29 miles (47 km) away; Lockwood, a small town, is located 6 miles (10 km) from the Mission.
Historians consider the Mission's pastoral location in the valley of the San Antonio River along the Santa Lucia Mountains as an outstanding example of early mission life.
In 1845, Mexican Governor Pío Pico declared all mission buildings for sale, but no one bid for Mission San Antonio. After nearly 30 years, the Mission was returned to the Catholic Church.
In 1894, roof tiles were salvaged from the property and installed on the Southern Pacific Railroad depot located in Burlingame, California (the first permanent structure constructed in the Mission Revival Style).
The first attempt at rebuilding the Mission came in 1903, when the California Historical Landmarks League rebuilt the chapel walls. Unfortunately, the earthquake of April 18, 1906, seriously damaged the building. In 1928, Franciscan Friars held services at San Antonio de Padua. It took nearly 50 years to completely restore the Mission. In the 1940s, the Hearst Foundation donated $50,000 for repairs.
The Mission is surrounded by the Fort Hunter Liggett Military Reservation, which was acquired by the U.S. Army from the Hearst family during World War II to train troops. Additional land was acquired from the Army in 1950 to increase the mission area to over 85 acres (340,000 m²). This fort is still actively training troops today.
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