National Historic Landmark

Mission Concepcion

San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas
Listed
April 14, 1970
Type
Building
Period
Colonial
Ref No.
70000740

About this property

Franciscan Friars established Mission Nuestra Señora de la Purísima Concepción de Acuña (also Mission Concepción) in 1711 as Nuestra Señora de la Purísima Concepción de los Hainais in East Texas. The mission was begun by the Domingo Ramón-St. Denis expedition and was originally meant to be a base for converting the Hasinai to Catholicism and teaching them what they needed to know to become Spanish citizens. The friars moved the mission in 1731 to San Antonio. After its relocation most of the people in the mission were Pajalats who spoke a Coahuiltecan language. Catholic Mass is still held at the mission every Sunday. On October 28, 1835, Mexican troops under Colonel Domingo de Ugartechea and Texian insurgents led by James Bowie and James Fannin fought the Battle of Concepción here. Historian J.R. Edmondson describes the 30-minute engagement as "the first major engagement of the Texas Revolution." Mission Concepción is the oldest unrestored stone church in America. it was designated a National Historic Landmark on April 15, 1970, and is part of San Antonio Missions National Historical Park. In 2015, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization designated Concepción and four other San Antonio missions, including The Alamo, as a World Heritage Site, the first in Texas and one of twenty-three such establishments in the United States. Mission Concepción consists of a sanctuary, nave, convento, and granary. When originally built, brightly painted frescos decorated both the exterior and interior of the building. Traces of the frescoes still exist on the weathered facade of the building. Experts restored some of the artwork on the interior ceilings and walls of the convento in 1988. The Archdiocese of San Antonio completed another restoration of the mission's interior in 2010 which exposed more frescoes in the sanctuary and nave.

Location

807 Mission Rd.
San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas
29.39105, -98.49185

Categories

ARCHITECTURERELIGION
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Wright, L. T., House
Industrial
0.5 mi
Yturri-Edmunds House
Civil War
0.6 mi
Maverick Building
Industrial
1.2 mi
Meerscheidt, Otto, House
Industrial
1.2 mi
U.S. San Antonio Arsenal
Early Republic
1.2 mi

Nearby Battles

Battle of Concepción
1835Early Republic
1 mi
Battle of the Grass Fight (Nov 1835)
1835Early Republic
1.7 mi
Battle of Concepción (October 28, 1835)
1835Early Republic
2 mi

Questions about this property

When was Mission Concepcion listed on the National Register?

Mission Concepcion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 14, 1970.

What type of historic resource is Mission Concepcion?

Mission Concepcion is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

Is Mission Concepcion a National Historic Landmark?

Yes. Mission Concepcion has been designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL), the highest level of federal recognition for historic properties in the United States.

What is the period of significance for Mission Concepcion?

The period of significance for Mission Concepcion is recorded as the colonial era.

Can I research the history near Mission Concepcion?

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