Founding of La Purisima Mission

Background. Fermín de Francisco Lasuén de Arasqueta (1736–1803) was a Spanish Basque Franciscan missionary to Alta California who became the second President of the California missions in 1785, after Junípero Serra's death. He ultimately founded nine of the twenty-one Spanish missions in California, including original Mission La Purísima.

Site and Naming. The mission was originally established at a site the Chumash called Algsacpi and the Spanish called the plain of Río Santa Rosa, one mile south of Lompoc. The Viceroyalty of New Spain made an exception to its rule against placing a California mission within seven miles of a pueblo, because Lompoc was so small. The founding fell on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, hence the mission's name.

Later Fate of the Original Site. The original complex served from its founding until it was destroyed by the 1812 Ventura earthquake, after which the mission was rebuilt a few miles to the northeast. The sources disagree on the exact date of destruction, giving December 21, 1812, and December 12, 1812. The ruins of the original site are recognized as California Historical Landmark No. 928, and the rebuilt mission is now part of La Purísima Mission State Historic Park.