Mission San Xavier del Bac (church) (Tucson, Arizona)

USA / Arizona / Drexel Heights / Tucson, Arizona / West San Xavier Road, 1950
 church, landmark, place with historical importance
1950 West San Xavier Road
Tucson, AZ 85746
www.sanxaviermission.org/
www.nps.gov/nr/travel/american_latino_heritage/san_xavi...

San Xavier Mission. Founded by Father Kino. This is an interesting historical landmark. I'd recommend visiting if you are in town and have some extra time. The paintings on the walls are fascinating.
 Add place (company, shop, etc.) to this building
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Xavier_del_Bac
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   32°6'26"N   111°0'28"W

Comments

  • One of the towers has a pyramidal roof, the other is flat on top. Two competing legends explain this: 1. when it was built, the king of Spain was down on the Jesuits, and taxed them heavily for each new church, so they left it unfinished to avoid the tax on a technicality; 2. they left the second tower unfinished so that every pilgrim or visitor to the mission could be hit up for a contribution to help finish the church. I lean toward #2 myself. The structure is entirely made of adobe with no reinforcement, and the heaviest walls at the base of the towers are twelve feet thick if I remember correctly. The interior decorations are simply amazing. Well worth seeing
This article was last modified 2 years ago