Only the Tumacacori mission is open to the public year round, with special tours to the other two available on special occasions. Check with the Park Rangers located at the entrance for information regarding tours of those sites.
A Spanish Jesuit Catholic missionary, Father Kino, first visited Tumacacori on the eastern bank of the Santa Cruz river in 1691. He was well-loved by the Native Americans because he treated them with respect and in many ways demonstrated that he had their best interests at heart. Here is a sculpture of him.
The next day he founded the mission at Guevavi, 15 miles up river. Guevavi was the missions headquarters in 1701, but priests travelled frequently to Tumacacori to hold mass and perform baptisms. Around 1750, disease (small pox and measles primarily) killed many Native Americans. By 1757 a small church was built that served the community for 65 years. Here is the foundation of that church.
In 1767, King Charles III of Spain banished the Jesuits from all of his realms and the Franciscans took over Tumacacori mission several years later. In 1771 the mission headquarters were moved to Tumacacori and the other two missions were abandoned.
There is an interpretive booklet for a self-guided tour of the mission. You can borrow one or purchase one for $1. There is a 7-minute video about the mission that can be viewed prior to walking into the garden.
Our first stop on the tour was to the garden. All missions had a similar configuration.
Around 1800, the Franciscans began building this larger church. Originally, the facade of the church as painted with bright colors ... only remnants of it remain.
Interior of the church. This is the nave. There were no pews. Parishioners knelt or stood throughout the mass (in Latin with parts in Spanish and the native language). The church is in the form of a long hall rather than the traditional cross configuration.
Entrance to the baptistry where both adults and children were baptized.
Lining the walls of the nave were four side altars where candles were lit and prayers made to statues of saints in the niches. Here are the remains of one of them.
Below can be seen the steps from the nave into the sanctuary where the priest celebrated the mass.
Remnants of the original paints, picture frames and stenciling can still be seen here in the sanctuary.
The altar in the sanctuary.
To the right of the sanctuary is the sacristy, the robing room for priests and their assistants.
View of the exterior wall of the church.
Behind the church is the mortuary chapel, circular in design (16' in diameter).
View from inside the mortuary to the courtyard gate.
Cemetery. Evidence of mission-era graves were destroyed long ago, although many deaths/burials were recorded and occurred here.
In the 1900s, it was again used as a cemetery with the last (and only marked) grave dating to 1916.
Storehouse. This building was originally two stories and was used to store food animal fodder. The mission had a communal system for growing and distributing food. The priests introduced domestic sheep, goats and cattle as well as wheat and fruit trees to the native communities.
Many foods were preserved (using the hot, dry climate) for year-round consumption. They were stored in clay pots.
Convento Ruin. This structure is where the priests lived during the mission era.
It also saw much use afterward and was even used as a school in the 1930s.
Here I am at the window. And John at the door!
Melhok Ki. This is a traditional O'oham house. This particular structure was built recently by the O'oham using the traditional tools and materials (mesquite timbers, ocotillo sticks, and mud). Originally, they built round houses, but eventually adopted the square room style (favored by the Spanish). This is representative of the types of homes that existed here during the mission era.
We proceeded to the museum where interesting exhibits and artifacts from both the early Jesuit period as well as the Franciscan era that followed.
These statues were originally in the niches of the mission church. They are now displayed within the museum.
Here is a depiction of what the church looked like in the 1800s.
There also exhibits about the Apache attacks, war with Mexico and eventually the Civil War. Arizona and New Mexico remained with the Union while Texas, of course, joined the Confederacy.
We have seen numerous missions and each of them have their own personality. This one was very interesting and we spent about 2 hours here. There were only a few other visitors there so it was a wonderful and spiritual experience. So much history here...it's fascinating to me.
Admission to the park is $3/person for a 7-day pass. John's senior pass gets us in for free. Check out their web site for additional details on hours of operation and tours to the other two mission ruins.
Website: www.nps.gov/tuma
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