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On our way north from Pismo to San Francisco we stopped in San Luis Obispo to wander around one of California’s old Spanish missions. SLO (as the locals call it) is centered around this old, yet still functioning Spanish mission. The Spanish crown encouraged the Franciscan mission system as an inexpensive way to lay claim to the valuable, resource rich land. Built in 1772 Mission SLO was the 5th mission in a chain of 21 missions along California’s El Camino Real (“The Royal Highway”). The mission fared well in the early years as the local Chumash Indians were quite friendly.

After 1822 when Mexico won independence from Spain, the mission started to suffer. In 1845 the Mexican government sold the mission and its land for $500. After the Guadalupe Hidalgo Treaty established California as US territory, the mission was deeded back to the Catholic Church. Mission SLO has been a functioning parish church since the 1850s.

The day we visited a wedding was in progress and the church was beautiful. The thick whitewashed walls gleamed and the red tile roof added to the charm.

Interestingly, red tile was not the first roofing choice of the Spanish. The missionaries switched to red tile roofs later as a matter of defense. Apparently, their first roofs were made of wood and thatch which some native peoples (not the Chumash), unhappy with the new arrivals, exploited. They shot flaming arrows into the roofs and watched the structures burn. It didn’t take the Franciscans long to decide on a new roofing material, similar to what they had back in Spain. Red tile roofs are today an iconic symbol of California.

After touring the mission we wandered around downtown. The city has a nice walkway along SLO Creek with several pedestrian bridges across it. Many of the downtown buildings are historic and quaint but that can be cause for concern as they do not meet current earthquake proof standards and so they have to post warning signs.

SLO seems like a great place: its not far from the ocean, it has mild weather, Cal-Poly State University is located here and there are some excellent vineyards in the area. We easily could have spent more time there but we had a sailing engagement to get to.

Photos: See the SLO photos in our photo pages.
Notes: We visited SLO on Saturday July 22nd, 2006.