Mission San Jose - San Antonio

Founded in 1720, Mission San Jose is the largest of the Texas missions.  Its imposing complex of stone walls, bastions, granary, and magnificent church was completed in 1782.  It is located a short drive from downtown San Antonio.  We actually took the trolley which dropped us off and we stayed for two hours and still didn't have time to take the guided tour which is offered by the National Park Service.

Much of what is visible today at Mission San Jose was reconstructed by the Works Progress Administration in the 1930s as part of the New Deal.  The dome and the bell tower and one of the mission walls had been destroyed over the intervening century and a half.

Fine carvings rivaling those of European edifices on the facade of San Jose's church gave it the title "Queen of the Missions."  A recent restoration was accomplished of the carvings by unknown artisans.

The present carved doors were crafted in 1937 by Peter Mansbendel to replace those removed in the 1880s' renovation attempted by the Benedectine monks. Mansbendel reproduced the original door design in 2.5-inch thick black walnut in a mere six weeks.   Small doors fitted within the larger ones are used to enter the church.

La Ventana de Rosa, the Rose Window, is located on the south wall of the church sacristy.  The window, sculpted ca. 1775, has been the object of both legend and admiration.  It is considered one of the finest examples of baroque architecture in North America.  The meaning behind the name is currently unknown, but legend has it named for Rosa, the betrothed of Juan Huizar who many believe created the window.

A simple cross sands in a small garden in front of the convento which provided housing for the missionaries and the lay assistants.  In 1795 the convento consisted of nine rooms downstairs and five upstairs.  The ruins standing today reflect a major renovation begun by Benedectine monks who took over the mission in the 1850s.  Benedictines from Latrobe, Pennsylvania, purchased the mission complex from the Diocese of San Antonio with plans of developing it as a school for boys. The American Civil War intervened and the property reverted to the diocese, and the work was never completed.

Mission San Jose is an active parish.  Visitors are welcome to attend mass on Sundays.

This will conclude my series on the San Antonio visit.  I hope you have enjoyed seeing what I saw.  There are a few other posts that I will be making in the future based on some of the cities I went through during the five-hour drive to and from San Antonio.  Since returning I've discovered that Vicksburg, Mississippi, is closer to my home than San Antonio!  Texas is indeed a large land and I'm in love with its history.