Tumacacori National Historical Park lies about an hour south of Tucson and its relatively small size belies the significance of the place. It preserves the ruins of three Spanish mission communities that were an intersecting point between European missionaries, settlers, soldiers and members of the O’odham, Yaqui, and Apache tribes. With lots of conflict in the area, the population and the status of the mission ebbed and flowed.
The first mission, established by Francisco Kino, was built in 1691. As a result of a rebellion by the O’odham in 1751, the mission was moved to the west side of the Santa Cruz River and a new structure was built and named San Jose de Tumacacori, which are the ruins shown in the photos. Despite efforts to build a larger structure, political strife and conflicts with the tribes in the area combined to make the area unsuitable for a sustainable community and the mission was abandoned by 1848. With the Gadsden Purchase in 1854, the area became a part of the United States. Given its remote location, the area could have been lost to history, but President Theodore Roosevelt named it a National Monument in 1908 and restoration efforts started.
I found it to be a great place to visit as you can walk through the church, orchard, graveyard, and storeroom to get a sense of what life was like. The museum on the grounds is an excellent resource for the history of the mission and the people who lived nearby.
