The lore of The Mission San Francisco
The Mission is named for Mission Dolores, which Spain founded in 1776 to bring the region under Spanish law. Dolores means sorrows.
Tap a year to see where it happened, or press Play.
1776
Friar Francisco Palóu founds the mission with a Mass on June 29, beside a lagoon named for Our Lady of Sorrows.
1791
The mission's adobe church, begun in 1782, is dedicated. With walls four feet thick, it is San Francisco's oldest intact building.
1851
A 3.25-mile plank toll road opens, linking Mission Dolores to the Gold Rush town by the bay. It becomes Mission Street.
1866
Robert Woodward opens Woodward's Gardens, with a zoo and an aquarium. It becomes San Francisco's most popular resort.
San Francisco Zoo & GardensHistorical Marker Database (marker by California Centennials Commission and Society of California Pioneers, 1949)WikipediaWikipedia
1906
The earthquake turns the ground to liquid under the Valencia Street Hotel. Three of its four floors sink. Many trapped inside drown.
Museum of the City of San FranciscoFoundSF (Shaping San Francisco)Ness Software (1906 newspaper compilation)
1906
Most water mains are broken. With the area's one working hydrant, at Church and 20th, firefighters stop the fire at 20th Street.
1906
Dolores Park, a former cemetery the city bought in 1905, shelters more than 1,600 people left homeless by the quake and fire.
1931
Seals Stadium, a 16,000-seat ballpark, opens at 16th and Bryant. The Giants play their first San Francisco seasons there, 1958 and 1959.
Pacific Coast Architecture Database, University of WashingtonAxios San Francisco
1973
BART, the Bay Area's new rail system, starts running trains under Mission Street to downtown, with stations at 16th and 24th.
1984
On Balmy Alley, 36 artists set out to paint 27 murals about Central America's civil wars, several denouncing US intervention.
2016
Dolores Park reopens after a $20.5 million renovation, its first upgrades in six decades. It is among the city's most popular parks.
OUR PICK2026
On Mission Street, La Taqueria, named a James Beard "America's Classic" in 2017. Our pick for the Mission's best burrito.
Today
Today the Mission is famous for its murals, its burritos and Dolores Park.
AAA ViaLonely PlanetSan Francisco Recreation and Parks Department
SOURCES
- Mission Dolores (Zephyrin Engelhardt, with Palóu's account of the founding)Museum of the City of San Francisco
- Misión de Nuestro Padre San Francisco de Asís (Mission Dolores)CyArk
- Mission Dolores, San Francisco (Discover Our Shared Heritage travel itinerary)US National Park Service
- Mission District, San FranciscoWikipedia
- The Lost LagoonKQED Quest
- Mission Plank RoadFoundSF (Shaping San Francisco)
- Mission StreetWikipedia
- Our History: Early 1800s, Woodward's GardensSan Francisco Zoo & Gardens
- Woodward's Gardens, California Historical Landmark No. 454Historical Marker Database (marker by California Centennials Commission and Society of California Pioneers, 1949)
- The Valencia Street HotelMuseum of the City of San Francisco
- 18th St Gulch, The Willows, Valencia St HotelFoundSF (Shaping San Francisco)
- The golden legacy of San Francisco's 'little hydrant that could' (Laura French)FireRescue1
- The Golden Fire HydrantClio
- Mission Dolores ParkSan Francisco Recreation and Parks Department
- Mission Dolores ParkWikipedia
- Seals Stadium, Mission District, San FranciscoPacific Coast Architecture Database, University of Washington
- Throwback Thursday: remembering Seals StadiumAxios San Francisco
- BART Historical TimelineSan Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District
- 16th Street Mission stationWikipedia
- Central American Solidarity Murals of the Mission District (Mauricio Ramirez)San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
- 2017 America's Classic: La TaqueriaJames Beard Foundation
- Mission San Francisco de AsísWikipedia
- The story behind San Francisco's golden fire hydrant that couldThe San Francisco Standard
- San Francisco's Mission DistrictAAA Via
- The Mission, SoMa & Potrero HillLonely Planet
- Valencia Street HotelNess Software (1906 newspaper compilation)
- Woodward's GardensWikipedia
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. The print of The Mission