I did touch upon the topic of California Missions Passport in my post on Mission Santa Clara. But I decided to dedicate an entire post, as it turns out to be much more significant than I previously thought, especially for history lovers!
California Missions map by R.M.K., INC. I got it as a souvenir at the Mission Dolores gift shop.
There are 21 Spanish missions built along the California coast, and some history buffs go on pilgrimages to visit all of them. But I had no idea until recently that there’s actually a thing called, “California Missions Passport,” with which you collect stamps at each of the missions you visit. Once you collect all 21 stamps, you can apply for and receive a “Certificate of Completion.” (There’s also a “Certificate of Progress,” awarded to those who collect 6 stamps from any of the passport’s four sections, and a “Certificate of Support” for, I think, those who donate to the California Missions Trail.)
Where to Get the Missions Passport
While you can get stamps at all missions, you can’t for passports. Some missions, like Mission Santa Clara, don’t even have souvenir/gift shops! According to the California Mission Store, passports are available only at the following 10 sites:
Mission San Diego
Mission San Luis Rey
Mission San Gabriel
Mission San Fernando
Mission San Buenaventura
Mission San Miguel
Mission San Antonio
Mission San Juan Bautista
Mission San Carlos
Mission San Francisco (aka Mission Dolores)
Mission San José *It wasn’t included in the list, but I saw passports being sold at the Mission San José gift shop when I visited!
So I recommend purchasing a passport when you’re visiting one of the above missions before visiting the other 10. (I had to go back to Mission Dolores to get my passport after I found out that Mission Santa Clara didn’t have them.)
With my newly acquired California Missions Passport at Mission Dolores! August 2025.
The passport cost $5.95, $6.46 tax included. I think it’s definitely worth it if you’re planning on visiting as many or all missions.
Update 8/30/2025: Another thing to note is that Missions Passports have different covers, depending on where you get them. The passport that I got in SF features Mission Dolores, but the passports sold at Mission San José look like this:
How to Apply for Certificates
Once you reach the milestone of visiting 6 or all 21 missions, you can receive your digital certificate. *While collecting stamps qualifies a person for the certificates, they appear to be more for completing the trek/cycle down or up the Missions Trail.
To receive the digital certificates, you need to notify the Lowman Publishing Company with a copy of your stamped passport for verification. It says on their website that they will then send over the digital certificate, which can be shared online and/or printed.
For more specifics and sample digital certificates, visit the California Missions Trail HERE.
My Progress
So, after revisiting Mission San Francisco de Asís for my passport, I’ve officially embarked on my stamp collecting journey! I’ll be tracking my progress here:
P.S. Per the California Mission Store blog, the Missions Passports were created when two missions requested Bob and his team at Lowman Publishing Company to make them. I wonder which ones?
Continuing on with my long overdue trips to California’s 21 missions, I arrived at the next mission on my list: Mission Santa Clara de Asís. As its name indicates, I thought that it was located somewhere in the city of Santa Clara. But I didn’t expect it to be sitting right at the heart of Santa Clara University!
Mission Santa Clara at Santa Clara University, 2025.
Santa Clara University
Founded in 1851 (during the Gold Rush!), Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit Catholic university. According to the official SCU website, this 174-year-old school is California’s “oldest operating institution of higher learning.” But while SCU was the first to open its doors, the University of the Pacific (also founded in 1851 as “California Wesleyan College”) was the first to receive a state charter. Regardless of technicalities, both Santa Clara University and the University of the Pacific are the oldest universities in California. (Which I had always assumed was UC Berkeley!)
But before this historic campus, of course, was the even more historic Mission Santa Clara. The university was built around the Mission, which explains why it’s located literally right in the middle of the campus, surrounded by students going to and from their classes.
Campus map of Santa Clara University.
⭐Mission Santa Clara is right at the ❤️of SCU.
👉Fun Facts about Santa Clara University
#1: The university was originally an all-boys preparatory school called, “Santa Clara College.” It became “The University of Santa Clara” in 1912 and the first Catholic, coed university in California in 1961 when female undergraduates were admitted.
#2: The founder and first president of SCU was John Nobili, S.J.
Plaque commemorating John Nobili S.J. found inside the Mission church.
Born “Giovanni Pietro Antonio Nobili” in Rome, he became a Jesuit priest and missionary who was assigned to the Oregon Territory. When he came to California, he visited San Francisco and San Jose, and he was appointed as a pastor at Mission Santa Clara. The preparatory school he founded in 1851 became the Santa Clara College and eventually, the Santa Clara University we know today. There’s a street (Nobili Avenue) and residence hall (Nobili Residence Hall) named after him.
The Nobili Hall at SCU. It’s right behind the Mission church.
#3: SCU’s mascot is a bronco, which I found out from Oxford Languages is a wild/half-tamed horse of the western U.S. And specifically, their mascot is called, “Bucky the Bronco.” Though I couldn’t meet Bucky the Bronco during my visit, I did find this bronze statue of what appears to be a bronco:
Update 8/27/2025: I got to see cute versions of Bucky the Bronco at the SCU student store!
Aren’t these the cutest horse plushies?
Lovely Campus
Not only does SCU boast of long history, but it also is such a pretty campus, with brightly colored roses and lush lavender growing here and there. The overall aesthetics of the campus give the impression that it’s being maintained with utmost care.
Roses at SCU.Lavender at SCU.
Mission Santa Clara de Asís: The Beginnings
Mission Santa Clara was the 8th California mission established by Junipero Serra, coming after Mission San Francisco de Asís aka Mission Dolores (HERE is my post on the 6th CA mission) and Mission San Juan Capistrano. Founded in 1777, the settlement outpost was first named “La Misión Santa Clara de Thamien,” at a Native American village of Socoisuka located on the Guadalupe River. There, the Franciscans shared Christianity to the Ohlone people.
Oil painting of the early days of Mission Santa Clara, by Andrew Putnam Hill (1849). It shows the Mission during the 1830s at its fifth site where it stands today.
Multiple Reconstructions & Relocations
Per various sources, natural disasters such as flood, earthquake, and fire led to several relocations of the mission; it was rebuilt 6 times and relocated 5 times since 1777!
At one of the entrances to the university, you can find this cross and plaques next to it. They mark where the third site of the Santa Clara Mission (1784-1818) was after its flooding. After an earthquake and a temporary church at the fourth site, the Mission was rebuilt at its current location (at the heart of SCU) and has been there since 1825.
There’s also a signage at the third Mission site showing how the site would have looked back when it was active. *The yellow arrow is where the entrance cross is.
Another signage on campus showing where the five different sites of Mission Santa Clara were. The first and second sites were next to where San Jose Airport is today!
In addition to multiple reconstructions, the Mission and its inhabitants have been through much over the decades: initial success as a Spanish Catholic mission, cultural conflicts, epidemics, and changes in ownership, like most California missions. It was established and owned by the Spanish Franciscans until Mexico’s secession from the Spanish Empire, during which the ownership went to the Ohlone people and fell into decay due to insufficient funds. Then under the ownership of Jesuit priests, including John Nobili, the Mission became Jesuit and the heart of SCU ever since.
Plaque outside the Mission marking it as a historical landmark.
Visiting Mission Santa Clara de Asís
One of the first things you will inevitably notice when you arrive at the Mission is the big cross in front of the church building. The cross at one of the entrances to the campus was a marker for the Mission’s third site. This cross contains “a portion of the original cross first erected by Fray Tomas de la Peña, O.F.M. before the entrance to the first Mission Santa Clara de Asis” at its base:
Remnants of (what is reported as) the original cross of Mission Santa Clara! (You can’t really see it in this photo due to the reflection of the glass. I highly recommend viewing it yourself in-person!
Behind the wooden cross is the beautifully carved facade of the chapel with sculptures of three different individuals on it:
They are St. John the Baptist (left), St. Clare (middle) who the Mission is named after, and St. Francis (right):
According to this very informative signage nearby the Mission, the facade has changed multiple times since 1825. It’s fascinating to see the various facades of the Mission throughout its history:
✝️More Crosses & Roses🌹
There are also these small white crosses placed out in front of the Mission. I didn’t know what they were until after stopping by the Visitor’s Corner inside, but they are crosses memorializing the “Martyrs of El Salvador” who were murdered “by government forces at the Jesuit University of Central America in El Salvador” in 1989. The eight crosses bear the name of each of the martyrs.
Eight crosses memorializing the “Martyrs of El Salvador” stand outside the mission steps.
Around the church building are more beautiful roses:
Left and right, there were just bushes after bushes of vibrant roses:
There’s a rose garden within the walls of the Old Cemetery, too.
Under the spotless, azure sky, the scene above- roses in sunlight at the historic Mission- was ethereally beautiful!
The gates were locked, and sure enough, it says online that the cemetery is closed to the public as a “memorialized area for those still buried” (SCU.edu).
Rose Garden and Cemetery beyond the gates. According to the self-guided tour pamphlet, the walls of the Garden/Cemetery “outline the gravesites of thousands of Ohlone, Californios, and Anglos buried here from 1822 to 1851” but the graves actually go beyond the walls – which I’ll share more below!
Outer Garden & Sacred Heart Statue
There’s another garden on the other side of the chapel.
Map on the “Mission Santa Clara Self-Guided Tour” pamphlet.
On the left-hand side of the chapel, is the “Mission Gardens” area that’s open to the public. It’s a lovely area where a statue of Jesus stands, surrounded by ever-beautiful roses. It’s called the “Sacred Heart Statue” on the map (I found out later that it was built to cover the old Mission water well!)
“Sacred Heart of Jesus” statue. Erected in 1884.
I think someone in charge of the campus grounds sometimes puts roses in Jesus’s hand. They’re not always there, but there was a rose in His hand when I visited the first time,🌹
At the foot of the statue, there are two inscriptions: on the front it says “Venite Ad Me (Come to Me) Matt. XI. 28.” and on the back “Discite A Me (Learn from Me) Matt. XI. 29.” They’re what Jesus told his disciples as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew.
Wisteria Arbor & More
Next to the Sacred Heart Statue is the Wisteria Arbor, which I read are over 160 years old! I visited during the summer so I couldn’t see any wisteria in bloom; but they say if you visit during the spring, you’ll get to enjoy the beauty & fragrance of this historic wisteria.
When you walk down the Wisteria Arbor, you’ll get to where the “Former Padres Dormitory” used to be (somewhere on the left-hand side in the photo below):
I didn’t really understand until I saw this illustration online showing what the old Mission would have looked like in its original form:
Screenshot of diagram showing the original Mission Quadrangle. Online resource shared by SCU HERE.
So the Mission today is missing some parts of the Quadrangle and the Padres Dormitory.
But the original Adobe Wall and Lodge from 1822 (the left and top sides of the Quadrangle) remain standing today.
The Adobe Wall & Lodge & Beyond
Having survived the 1926 fire that destroyed all the other parts of the 1822 Misssion, the Adobe Wall and Lodge are the oldest structures on campus and look as such. Wait, they’re also the “oldest structures on any college campus in the West” (Mission Map)!
You can even see the individual adobe bricks inside the wall:
Further beyond are where there used to be an ancient olive orchard that provided olives and oil.
Grounds beyond the Adobe Wall. Apparently, there used to be 40 olive trees at one point!
And there were remnants of these Mills/Grinding Stones, which I read were used to process olive oil, grains, and corn:
You can also find another rose garden (where one of the mills/grinding stones is), an area of Ethiopian/Abyssinian Roses, a granite obelisk, and an observatory:
Rose Garden with Grinding Stone at its center.
Ricard Observatory and an obelisk commemorating the launching site of Professor John J. Montgomery’s controlled flight in 1905.
The areas next to the Ricard Observatory were also where a fruit orchard and vineyard had once existed.
Inside Mission Santa Clara de Asís
One of the entrance doors at the Mission.
To be honest, I didn’t know how to get inside the Mission. Mission Dolores had a signage directing people where to enter, but Mission Santa Clara didn’t. As I didn’t want to barge in on a service inside a historic property and an active campus church, I spent some time lingering outside totally unsure how to get in. But luckily, I ran into a student worker at SCU who let me inside the chapel after making sure that the church was open and no event (i.e. mass services, weddings, funerals, baptisms) was taking place within.
I entered through the main entrance door and immediately faced the decorative interior of the chapel and sanctuary at the back:
What you see when you enter inside.
The Vestibule is where you stand once you enter. On the left from the entrance are the stairs to the Bell Tower (off limits to visitors) and on the right is the Visitor’s Corner where you can pick up a “Self-Guided Tour” pamphlet.
I think I was first surprised by how colorful the ceiling was in its pink and sky-blue hues. And how long the chapel was, with intricate chandeliers (total of 3) and individual wooden chairs instead of pews. It was definitely unique and different from Mission Dolores.
Closeup of one of the intricate chandeliers inside the chapel. I thought the floating heads of angels were a little grotesque, though.
Above the Vestibule was an organ donated by a generous couple:
The Mission Organ, ” A Gift from Mr. & Mrs. Foster G. McGaw.”
…and down the chapel were lamps with images depicting the final days of Jesus’s ministry, before His resurrection:
Here’s a closeup of one of the lamps, lighted, too:
Side Chapels
I was amazed by the details on all the paintings, sculptures, and wall decorations as I made my way down to the sanctuary:
This side chapel, labeled as “Holy Family” on the map, used to be a baptistery and houses a painting of Jesus (God the Son) with Mary and Joseph, under God the Father and God the Holy Spirit (dove). By Riva Giuseppe Bergamo (1889).
Portraits and sculptures inside some of the side chapels you’ll see on your way to the sanctuary. Each side chapel is dedicated to different individuals, including St. Ignatius of Loyola (founder of the Jesuit Order); St. Anthony of Padua (first follower of St. Francis); St. Francis (founder of the Franciscan Order); St. Joseph (stepfather of Jesus, husband of Mary & patron saint of SCU); and “Our Lady of Guadalupe.”
“Catala Crucifix,” carved in Mexico. This crucifix arrived at the Mission in 1802.
The above “Catala Crucifix” is inside one of the 7 side chapels. It’s called “Catala Crucifix,” because Father Magín Catalá used to pray before it. Magín Catalá was a Spanish missionary born on January 30, 1761 at Montblanc in the Diocese of Tarragona, Spain. He joined the Franciscan Monastery in Barcelona when he was just 16 years old and was ordained a priest in 1785. From Cádiz, Spain, he traveled to Mexico in 1786 to work for the missionary college of San Fernando. After about 8 years, he arrived in California and spent the following 36 years working at Mission Santa Clara (from 1794-1830).
Plaque commemorating “Padre Magín Catalá, O.F.M.” Referred to as “The Holy Man of Santa Clara,” Catalá was revered and loved by those around him, including the Native American converts.
*There’s also a plaque on the outside of the chapel marking Magín Catalá’s cell where he passed away:
The Sanctuary
After taking in all the artworks and information displayed in each side chapel, I finally reached the sanctuary, which is made up of the main altar and pulpit. Though it wasn’t the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo, the sanctuary’s ceiling, nonetheless, was stunning to view!
The sanctuary. According to the official pamphlet, the High Altar ceiling and reredos aren’t the originals but are replicas of the 1825 church.
Against the fresco ceiling painted in azure blue, the golden stars seemed to glisten. *The “IHS” at the center are Greek for “Jesus.”
Visitor’s Corner & Bell Tower
Visitor’s Corner/Center inside Mission Santa Clara.
While I did see students giving tours to visitors, it says online that guided tours are not offered, with the exception of schools and class groups who can arrange tours through the de Saisset Museum located right next to the Mission. But for regular visitors like me, there are Self-Guided Tour pamphlets (which I’ve included and mentioned multiple times above) available at the Visitor’s Corner. It can also be downloaded online HERE.
Also at the Visitor’s Corner are informative tapestries and a tablet with more interesting facts about the Mission, along with plaques commemorating Santa Clara students and faculty veterans.
The steps to the Bell Tower are on the other side but are not open to the public.
Steps to the off-limits Bell Tower.
Per Wikipedia, the original bells were donated by King Charles III of Spain in 1777 and rang every evening per a promise made to the king.
Bells inside the Bell Tower.
Today, a recording of the bells are played instead of actually ringing the bells. I actually got to hear it when I visited on a Friday morning:
There are 3 bells, cast in 1798, 1799, and 1805, respectively. One of the three bells was donated by King Carlos IV but was destroyed in a fire, and King Alphonso XIII donated a replacement in 1929. The replacement (fourth) bell is on display at the de Saisset Museum.
Alas, the Museum was closed! 😞
I recommend NOT visiting Mission Santa Clara during the summer like I did… So that you can explore de Saisset Museum’s California Stories from Thámien to Santa Clara Exhibit showcasing Mission era artifacts, including the fourth bell.
St. Francis Chapel (The OG Chapel)
After exploring inside the Mission, I walked around the garden/cemetery to get to the Mission Office, in hopes of finding a souvenir shop next to it. The door was shut, so I tried knocking.
The Mission Office.
To my pleasant surprise, I got to meet the Director of Development of Mission Santa Clara de Asís, Andrew Chai! He let me inside the Office and showed me the St. Francis Chapel, which has the actual remains of the original Mission church, including its adobe wall, floor covering, and artifacts. I was so lucky to have visited during the Mission Office’s hours, which is the only time when you can view the historic chapel:
More Cool History
Not only did Andrew show me the insides of St. Francis Chapel, but he also shared with me a plethora of cool historical facts about the Mission I hadn’t known. He told me that…
🧱There used to be an old well at the Mission. But when it no longer was used, the statue of Jesus was built to cover the hole that had lost its purpose.
🧱The Mission church today was reconstructed with different materials (i.e. steel) and built in different dimensions (longer and larger to fit all the students at SCU) from the original structure. The original materials, paint, and shape of the Mission can be seen inside the St. Francis Chapel, which is much smaller than the reconstructed Mission.
Inside St. Francis Chapel, with the original adobe wall!
The original floor covering!
🧱And here’s something literally wild: these paw prints are from animals (maybe dogs?) who couldn’t resist stepping on the floor before they had dried completely. Thanks to them, we get to see their little footprints preserved for hundreds of years inside St. Francis Chapel!
Aren’t these the cutest? 🐾
🧱There used to be a small, redbrick student chapel adjacent to the Old Cemetery. But after the 1926 fire, only the entry porch remains today as steps leading to the Cemetery.
Where the old student chapel would have been. *I drew in a very rough sketch of a church building just to imagine how it would have looked like with the student chapel there. That’s probably NOT how it had looked like!
Steps to the old student chapel, which used to house the Holy Family painting now placed inside the Mission church.
I’m not sure if the above is the original floor of the old student chapel. Regardless, isn’t it neat?
🧱The Old Cemetery actually goes beyond its walls and into the grassy lawns next to the Mission. Unaware students and visitors might be sitting or walking right above cemetery grounds!
🧱As mentioned previously, other original structures onsite are the Adobe Wall and Lodge. I was told that the Lodge used to be a kitchen and still functions as one, albeit with stainless appliances.
….and so much more!
⛪ The Mission Office & Passport 📃
Everything Andrew shared with me made me appreciate the Mission so much more. If you want more than just a reading from pamphlet/guide/online resources, I highly recommend that you visit the Mission Office during their hours. (Thank you Andrew for making my visit to the Santa Clara Mission all the more memorable & fun! 😊)
The Mission church is open every day, from 7 AM to 7 PM, but the Mission Office is open from Monday to Friday, from *8 AM to 4 PM. (*While it says 8 AM online, it says 8:30 AM inside the Visitor’s Corner… Maybe the hours have been slightly adjusted recently?)
Notice about Mission passport stamps at the Visitor’s Corner.
Not only can you get a glimpse of St. Francis Chapel (and 🐾!) through the Mission Office, but you can also get a stamp if you have a “Missions passport.” According to California Missions Trail, this passport is a pocket-sized booklet/pamphlet for recording all the Missions you visit. Apparently, if you visit all 21 Missions and collect stamps for each, you can receive a Certificate of Completion. (They also give out “Certificate of Progress” for those who collect stamps for 6 Mission sites.)
While passports are “available at most of the Missions,” I couldn’t get mine at SCU! 🥲*Per the California Mission Store by Lowman Publishing, passports are available for purchase only at the following 10 missions: Mission San Diego, Mission San Luis Rey, Mission San Gabriel, Mission San Fernando, Mission San Buenaventura, Mission San Miguel, Mission San Antonio, Mission San Juan Bautista, Mission San Carlos in Carmel, and Mission Dolores in San Francisco.
Update 8/27/2025: I finally got mine and began my stamp collecting journey! HERE is an entire post on Missions Passport.
Speaking of Mission-related items, there isn’t a gift shop at Mission Santa Clara. But there are some Mission-related items at the campus store:
The SCU campus store, “Bronco Corner,” is within walking distance from the Mission.
But I learned that purchases made there don’t support the Mission. So if you want to support Mission Santa Clara, donations can be made HERE.
Outside St. Francis Chapel.
👉Fun Facts about Mission Santa Clara
#1: Mission Santa Clara once had the largest Indian population of any California mission.
Signage on campus about the Ohlone people who joined the Mission.
#2: It was the first CA mission named in honor of a woman, Saint Clare, who followed Francis of Assisi, the founder of the Franciscan Order.
#3: The city, county, and university are all named after the Mission; the logo of the university is the Mission church itself.
More souvenirs at the SCU campus store.
#4: It’s the only mission located on a university campus:
Mission Santa Clara Today
With its Jesuit origins focusing on education and its Franciscan nature of serving the poor and marginalized, the Mission continues to serve as the spiritual and historic heart of Santa Clara University. Soon reaching its 250th anniversary in 2027, Mission Santa Clara de Asís is a lovely chapel of California’s unique history. Its story of faith, sacrifice, and diversity are being well-preserved on the SCU campus adorned with historical signages and roses.
P.S. Some tips & advice: I highly recommend visiting Mission Santa Clara during the spring, when you can enjoy the Wisteria Arbor in full bloom and visit the de Saisset Museum. Plus, it can get quite hot during the summer in Santa Clara…Plus, if you plan on taking photos like I did, be aware that Santa Clara University is a private property and permits are required. Per the SCU webpage HERE, I applied for permission by contacting the Mission Office.
P.P.S. Not only does SCU abound with roses, signages, and history, but also the campus teems with squirrels. This fellow followed me for a little while during my self-guided tour:
P.P.P.P.S. Here are more photos of the aesthetic Santa Clara University and Mission Santa Clara!
The Time Traveler is an upcoming author who holds great appreciation for both classic literature and history. The author aspires to publish historical fictions and other written works in the near future, in hopes of creating works that entertain, inform, and inspire.
The author also appreciates all things aesthetic and enjoys traveling around the world to learn and observe.
