Antique Real Photo Postcard. Identified as the altar of MIssion San Miguel Archangel in San Miguel, California. Published by Frashers Inc. Divided back, unused. Condition: This is an original photo postcard, not a copy or reproduction. It is in excellent condition. Comments: Mission San Miguel is one of California's historical and cultural treasures. The beautiful old adobe building, whose foundations were laid more than 200 years ago, is a precious part of our heritage, with a story that is integral to California's history. Mission San Miguel - named for the Archangel Saint Michael - was founded by Franciscan Father Fermin Francisco de Lasuen in 1797, and was meant to close the gap between Mission San Antonio to the north and Mission San Luis Obispo to the south. Father Buenaventura Sitjar, who had ministered for years at Mission San Antonio and was fluent in the local Salinan language, baptized 25 youth on the day the Mission was established. A temporary church was built in 1797 but was lost to fire in 1806 - at a time when more than 1,000 Salinans were living and working at the mission. Soon after the fire, preparations for a new adobe church began. Tiles and adobe blocks were made and stored before the stone foundation of the church was laid in 1816. By 1821 the church building was complete, along with the interior frescos designed by Esteban Munras.