Colonial Rosary: The Spanish and Indian Missions of California

by Alison Lake

California would be a different place today without the imprint of Spanish culture and the legacy of Indian civilization. The colonial Spanish missions that dot the coast and foothills between Sonoma and San Diego are relics of a past that transformed California’s landscape and its people. In a spare and accessible style, Colonial Rosary looks at the complexity of California’s Indian civilization and the social effects of missionary control. While oppressive institutions lasted in California for almost eighty years under the tight reins of royal Spain, the Catholic Church, and the government of Mexico, letters and government documents reveal the missionaries’ genuine concern for the Indian communities they oversaw for their health, spiritual upbringing, and material needs. With its balanced attention to the variety of sources on the mission period, Colonial Rosary illuminates ongoing debates over the role of the Franciscan missions in the settlement of California. By sharing the missions’ stories of tragedy and triumph, author Alison Lake underlines the importance of preserving these vestiges of California’s prestatehood period. An illustrated tour of the missions as well as a sensitive record of their impact on California history and culture, Colonial Rosary brings the story of the Spanish missions of California alive.

328 pages, Paperback

First published June 28, 2006

Reviews

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A major factor in the Spanish colonization of Southern California was the mission system set up by the Jesuits and the Franciscans. The book discusses the natives in pre-Spanish California and the process for establishing the missions along the Camino Real paralleling the coast. It also looks at the role of settlers from Mexico. I thought that it was informative but the subject could have been explored in a little more detail. Colonial Rosary was easy to read without being boring.