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San Xavier del Bac, named for Saint Francis Xavier (a Franciscan), is the northern-most mission in a chain of churches founded by Father Eusebio Kino, a Jesuit, that marked the furthest outpost of the Spanish empire. Construction of the present church began about 1783, 72 years after Father kino's death, and was completed in 1797 under the leadership of the Order of Friars Minor, the Franciscans. In 1827, the Franciscans and others born in Spain were expelled from the newly independent Mexico. In 1837, Father Antonio Gonzales, a Mexican born Franciscan, left his residency at San Xavier del Bac. It would be 76 years before the men of the Order of Friars Minor would return to live beside the graceful church they had built in the desert.
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