Mission La Concepcion Purisima de Maria Santisima, the Mission of the Immaculate Conception of most Holy Mary, was founded by Father Presidente Fermn de Lasuen on Dec. 8, 1787, at what is now Locust Avenue and F Street. It was the eleventh of 21 Franciscan missions in California. During its early years, several thousand Chumash Indians were baptized into the Catholic Church, more than 100 large and small adobe buildings were built, a water system was developed, crops were planted, and as many as 19,000 head of mission livestock roamed the valley. In 1812, also known as El Ano de los Temblores, a powerful earthquake on Dec. 2, followed by rains and flooding, destroyed most of the mission buildings. Because of frequent flooding, the fathers decided to rebuild the mission at its present site, known as "canyon of the wilderness."