- La Iglesia de Nuestra Señora Reina de los Angeles
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Nuestra Señora Reina de los Angeles
A photograph of the "Plaza Church" taken by William Henry Jackson between 1890 and 1900. The structure incorporated a four-bell campanario, or "bell wall" prior to being rebuilt in 1861.[1]Location Los Angeles, California Name as founded Nuestra Señora Reina de los Ángeles English translation Our Lady Queen of the Angels Patron Mary, mother of Jesus Founding date August 18, 1814 Founding priest(s) Father Luis Gíl y Taboada Governing body Roman Catholic Church Current use Parish Church Coordinates 34°03′25″N 118°14′22″W / 34.05698°N 118.23939°WCoordinates: 34°03′25″N 118°14′22″W / 34.05698°N 118.23939°W California Historical Landmark #144 La Iglesia de Nuestra Señora la Reina de Los Angeles[2] (The Church of Our Lady the Queen of the Angels) is a Catholic church founded on August 18, 1814 by Fray Luis Gil y Taboada, who placed the cornerstone of a new church amid the ruins of the former "sub-mission," the Nuestra Señora Reina de los Angeles Asistencia to serve the local pobladores (settlers). The completed structure was dedicated on December 8, 1822.[3] A replacement chapel, named for Mary, mother of Jesus (La Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de los Angeles, or "The Church of Our Lady of the Angels") was rebuilt using materials of the original church in 1861; Reina, meaning "Queen," was added later.[4] For years, the little chapel, which collected the nicknames "La Placita" and "Plaza Church," served as the sole Roman Catholic church in Los Angeles.
The facility has operated under the auspices of the Claretian Missionary Fathers since 1908.
It was designated one of the first three Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments in 1962,[5] and has been designated as a California Historical Landmark,#144.
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During the 1980s, the church called itself a sanctuary for refugees threatened with deportation to El Salvador. The sanctuary movement continues: On August 19, 2007, immigration activist Elvira Arellano was arrested outside the church and later deported to Mexico.
Gallery
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The "Old Plaza Church" facing the Plaza, 1869. The brick reservoir in the middle of the Plaza was the original terminus of the Zanja Madre.
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The facade of Nuestra Señora Reina de los Angeles in 2007.
See also
- History of Los Angeles, California
- Los Angeles Plaza Historic District
- Olvera Street
- USNS Mission Los Angeles (AO-117) — a fleet oiler built during World War II.
- Sanctuary movement
External links
- Our Lady Queen of Angels Church official site
- Nuestra Señora Reina de Los Angeles
- Sanctuary Movement history on New Sanctuary Movement page
Notes
- Miller, Henry and Harry Knill (ed.) (2000). California Missions: The Earliest Series of Views Made in 1856. Bellerophon Books, Santa Barbara, CA. ISBN 0-88388-119-5.
- Ruscin, Terry (1999). Mission Memoirs. Sunbelt Publications, San Diego, CA. ISBN 0-932653-30-8.
- "Directory for Missions and other Hispanic Sites". California Mission Studies Association. Archived from the original on 2007-04-02. http://web.archive.org/web/20070402144559/http://www.ca-missions.org/harley.html. Retrieved 2007-05-30.
References
- ^ Miller and Knill, p. 1
- ^ California Mission Studies Association
- ^ Ruscin, p. 49.
- ^ Ruscin, p. 50.
- ^ Los Angeles Department of City Planning (September 7, 2007) (PDF). Historic - Cultural Monuments (HCM) Listing: City Declared Monuments. City of Los Angeles. http://www.cityprojectca.org/ourwork/documents/HCMDatabase090707.pdf. Retrieved 2008-05-29
Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument Lists Downtown Los Angeles • East and Northeast Sides • Harbor Area • Hollywood • San Fernando Valley •
Silver Lake, Angelino Heights and Echo Park • South Los Angeles • Westside • Wilshire and Westlake AreasCategories:- History of Los Angeles, California
- Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles
- New Spain
- Colonial Mexico
- Mexican California
- History of Catholicism in the United States
- Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments
- Churches in Los Angeles, California
- Religious organizations established in 1814
- Religious buildings completed in 1861
- Roman Catholic churches in California
- Spanish Colonial architecture in California
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