Mission La Concepcion Purisima de Maria Santisima (Mission of the Immaculate Conception of most Holy Mary) was founded by Father Presidente Fermn de Lasuen on Dec. 8, 1787 at what is now Locust Avenue and F Street. It was the eleventh of 21 Franciscan Missions in California. During the mission's early years, several thousand Chumash Indians were baptized into the Catholic Church, over 100 large and small adobe buildings were built; a water system developed, crops planted and as many as 19,000 head of mission livestock roamed the valley. The year of 1812, also known as El Ano de los Temblores, brought disaster to the mission. On Dec. 2 of that fateful year, a powerful earthquake followed by rains and flooding destroyed most of the mission buildings. Because of frequent flooding, the fathers decided to rebuilt the mission at its present site known as "canyon of the wilderness".
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