Old Mission San Jose

California Historical Landmark No. 334. Mission San Jose was founded on June 11, 1797 by Father Fermin Francisco de Lasuen. This was the 14th of twenty-one Spanish missions established in Alta California. A tour through Old Mission San Jose’s historic facilities includes the Mission Museum, the Church, the historic Cemetery, and the Garden.

In the Museum, an 18-minute video depicts Spanish exploration and the 1797 founding of the mission as well as day-to-day living within the mission. See Ohlone Indian artifacts, religious objects from the Franciscan period, and items from the Mission and Rancho eras. The Church is a reconstruction of the 1830s mission adobe church, built with the materials and using construction methods of that time. It also contains the rare Rosales Opus 14 Spanish Organ.

The cemetery holds the graves of many prominent Spanish and American settlers, and the rose garden includes a fountain and plantings representing the original mission period.