Historic Missions, Tuscon, Arizona

Mission San Xavier del Bac
We visited the Mission San Xavier del Bac on the way to the Tumacacori Mission ruins. I haven’t ever entered a catholic mission but I have to say the artwork is pretty amazing. Most of the artwork appears to have been from the 1820s or even earlier. The mission declared a National Historic Landmark in 1960.

History
San Xavier del Bac is a historic Spanish Catholic mission located about 10 miles south of downtown Tucson, Arizona, on the Tohono O'odham San Xavier Indian Reservation. Named for a pioneering Christian missionary and co-founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesuit Order), the Mission is also known as the "place where the water appears," as there were once natural springs in the area. The Santa Cruz River which now runs only part of the year is also nearby. The Mission is situated in the center of a centuries-old Indian settlement of the Tohono O'odham (formerly known as Papago), located along the banks of the Santa Cruz River.

Date: 11.04.2011
Temp: 74°
Elevation: 2,389 ft
Address: 1950 West San Xavier Road
Tucson, AZ 85746
Website: www.sanxaviermission.org