San Luis Obispo de Tolosa., San Luis Obispo

Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa was founded by Father Juniperro Serra on September 1, 1772. The mission was the 5th out the 21 to be founded. As Governor Portola and his men continued to search for Monterey Bay, they were taken aback at the great number of bears which inhabited the valley, which was promptly named the Valley of the Bears. The Spaniards killed several bears for food. The meat was generously shared with hungry Indians and that kindness paid dividends quickly after Father Serra founded the fifth mission in the Valley of the Bears. The first buildings were of adobe with thatched roofs, typical of the early missions.

In recent years, careful restoration has given the church much of its original appearance and was returned to the catholic church in 1859 and still serves as a working catholic church; and with the number of today's parish members, the Mission needs to add more space. need to add on more space. The original padres' quarters are now a museum and a square block in the heart of the "City with a Mission" is all that is left to be seen of former greatness.

The mission post San Luis Obispo de Tolosa dates from 1772 and is situated right in the center of the preprossessing town. It's the first mission post which was finished off with red roofing-tiles. Later on this style became known as the "Mission Style". Inside the mission post are a lot of ols Spanish paintings and a small museum with some objects of Chumash Indians and colonists.

We only passed through San Luis Obispo and made a short stop for coffee, etc. We regretted that because there was more than enough to see besides the mission post, like the County Historical Museum, in which the history of San Luis Obispo is told.