Francisco María Piccolo
Encyclopedia
Francisco María Piccolo (1654–1729) was one of the first Jesuit missionaries in Baja California Sur
, Mexico. His letters and reports are important sources for the ethnography
and early history of the peninsula.
Piccolo was born in Palermo, Sicily. He served as a Jesuit missionary for 13 years among the Tarahumara
of Chihuahua before being assigned to the new Baja California mission field. Eusebio Francisco Kino
, the original driving force behind the Jesuit effort, was unable to participate when his project finally became a reality. As a consequence, Juan Maria Salvatierra was the lone missionary in establishing Loreto among its Monqui
inhabitants in 1697. Piccolo crossed the Gulf of California to be Salvatierra's assistant about a month later.
Piccolo founded the second Baja California mission, San Francisco Javier
, among the Cochimí
in 1699 and served there until 1703, with a hiatus during which he represented the Baja California interests of the Jesuits in Mexico City. He was assigned to duties as visitador for the Jesuit missions in Sonora
in 1705–1709, but he returned to Baja California and served at Mulegé
and Loreto until his death in 1729.
His "Informe" or report of 1702, published in Mexico City, was an influential early account of the peninsular missions, although its optimism about the potential of Baja California was something of an embarrassment to later Jesuit apologists. He conducted several exploratory trips seeking neophytes and future mission sites, including journeys to what would later be Mulegé, La Purísima
and San Ignacio
. His accounts of these travels contain additional ethnographic information on the Cochimí.
Baja California Sur
Baja California Sur , is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. Before becoming a state on October 8, 1974, the area was known as the South Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises...
, Mexico. His letters and reports are important sources for the ethnography
Ethnography
Ethnography is a qualitative method aimed to learn and understand cultural phenomena which reflect the knowledge and system of meanings guiding the life of a cultural group...
and early history of the peninsula.
Piccolo was born in Palermo, Sicily. He served as a Jesuit missionary for 13 years among the Tarahumara
Tarahumara
The Rarámuri or Tarahumara are a Native American people of northwestern Mexico who are renowned for their long-distance running ability...
of Chihuahua before being assigned to the new Baja California mission field. Eusebio Francisco Kino
Eusebio Kino
Eusebio Francisco Kino S.J. was an Italian Roman Catholic priest who became famous in what is now northwestern Mexico and the southwestern United States in the region then known as the Pimaria Alta...
, the original driving force behind the Jesuit effort, was unable to participate when his project finally became a reality. As a consequence, Juan Maria Salvatierra was the lone missionary in establishing Loreto among its Monqui
Monqui
The Monquis were the Native American inhabitants of the vicinity of Loreto, Baja California Sur, Mexico, at the time of Spanish contact. Probably first encountered by explorers traveling up the Gulf of California during the sixteenth century, they were subjected to some of the peninsula's earliest...
inhabitants in 1697. Piccolo crossed the Gulf of California to be Salvatierra's assistant about a month later.
Piccolo founded the second Baja California mission, San Francisco Javier
Misión San Francisco Javier de Viggé-Biaundó
Misión San Francisco Javier de Viggé-Biaundó was a Spanish mission in San Javier, Baja California Sur, Mexico.-Origins:The Spanish mission of San Francisco Javier was initially founded by the Jesuit missionary Francisco María Piccolo in 1699 at a spring called Biaundó by the native Cochimí, about 8...
, among the Cochimí
Cochimi
The Cochimí are the aboriginal inhabitants of the central part of the Baja California peninsula, from El Rosario in the north to San Javier in the south....
in 1699 and served there until 1703, with a hiatus during which he represented the Baja California interests of the Jesuits in Mexico City. He was assigned to duties as visitador for the Jesuit missions in Sonora
Sonora
Sonora officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 72 municipalities; the capital city is Hermosillo....
in 1705–1709, but he returned to Baja California and served at Mulegé
Misión Santa Rosalía de Mulegé
Mission Santa Rosalía de Mulegé was founded in 1705 by the Jesuit missionary Juan Manuel de Basaldúa at a ranchería of the local Cochimí which was known as Mulegé, in Baja California Sur, Mexico. The site lies near the entrance of Bahía de Concepción, on the Gulf of California coast.A few odd...
and Loreto until his death in 1729.
His "Informe" or report of 1702, published in Mexico City, was an influential early account of the peninsular missions, although its optimism about the potential of Baja California was something of an embarrassment to later Jesuit apologists. He conducted several exploratory trips seeking neophytes and future mission sites, including journeys to what would later be Mulegé, La Purísima
Misión La Purísima Concepción de Cadegomó
Mission La Purísima, was founded about 100 kilometers west of Loreto in Baja California Sur, by the Jesuit missionary Nicolás Tamaral in 1720. By 1735 it had been moved to a new location at the Cochimí ranchería known as Cadegomó, meaning "arroyo of the carrizos", about 30 kilometers south of the...
and San Ignacio
San Ignacio, Baja California Sur
San Ignacio is a palm oasis town in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur, located between Guerrero Negro and Santa Rosalía. The town had a 2010 census population of 667 inhabitants and grew at the site of the Cochimí settlement of Kadakaamán and the Jesuit Mission San Ignacio founded in 1728 by...
. His accounts of these travels contain additional ethnographic information on the Cochimí.