Tumacácori Church - Sacristy

The barrel vaulted ceiling of the sacristy was blackened by campfires in the late 1800's.

NPS Photo

Quick Facts

Location:

Tumacácori mission grounds

Amenities

2 listed

Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Wheelchair Accessible

The sacristy served as the priest’s office. It housed the holy vestments and other objects for Mass. A priest would spend many hours working by candlelight in this room, documenting the important events of the day such as baptisms, marriages, and deaths. The mission records are a treasure trove of information, but require some skill to interpret as they were handwritten with quill pen in now-antique Spanish. Personal details, especially from the perspective of women, O’odham, Yoeme, and Nde community members, are difficult to extract. 

After the mission residents left Tumacácori for the last time in 1848, the church became a refuge and the sacristy its primary lodging. The protection of its thick walls offered welcome shelter for gold-seekers on their way to California, and for Mexican and U.S. soldiers and cowboys. These tired travelers recorded their stays not in mission record books, but on the walls. The darkened ceiling and many names are proof of the numerous fires made, dinners cooked, and stories told in this space.