San Juan Capistrano Mission Birdhouse Postcard

"San Juan Capistrano Mission Birdhouse" by Catherine Sherman. A bird house reminiscent of the Mission church stands on the grounds of the Mission of San Juan Capistrano in California. Birds hold a special place in the town of San Juan Capistrano in California. The miracle of the “Swallows” of Capistrano takes place each year at Mission San Juan Capistrano, on March 19th, St. Joseph’s Day. Swallows migrate 6,000 miles from Goya, Argentina to San Juan Capistrano in large groups. The town of San Juan Capistrano welcomes visitors from all parts of the world to witness the return of the swallows, a tradition that has been celebrated since the early 1930s. Mission San Juan Capistrano was a Spanish mission in Southern California, located in present-day San Juan Capistrano. It was founded on All Saints' Day November 1, 1776, by Spanish Catholics of the Franciscan Order. Named for Giovanni da Capistrano, a 15th-century theologian and "warrior priest" who resided in the Abruzzo region of Italy, San Juan Capistrano has the distinction of being home to the oldest building in California still in use, a chapel built in 1782. Known alternately as "Serra's Chapel" and "Father Serra's Church," it is the only extant structure where it has been documented that the padre Junipero Serra celebrated mass. One of the best known of the Alta California missions (and one of the few missions to have actually been founded twice -- others being Mission San Gabriel Archangel and Mission La Purisima Concepcion). The site was originally consecrated on October 30, 1775, by Father Fermin Lasuen, but was quickly abandoned due to unrest among the indigenous population in San Diego.