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The original inhabitants of the San Juan Valley  were the Mutsune, who have been identified as a branch of the larger Ohlone or Costanoan cultural and linguistic group of the central and northern coasts of California.  Original settlements consisted of thatch-covered structures with rock-lined hearths and utensils ranging from groundstone mortars and pestles to arrowheads and related stone tools.  Other related peoples in the region are known to have occupied the region over 5,000 years before the present.

The center of town is situated about the Old Mission of San Juan Bautista, which was built over the earliest buildings erected by the Spaniards and Mutsune at the site of Popeloutchom.  Though the earliest constructions began in 1797, the main quadrangle that dominated much of the mission period, is largely gone.  Constructed in its earliest phase in 1800, and expanded in 1810, 1812, and 1816, the quadrangle and convento were the heart of early mission life.  The Old Mission, which has undergone many phases of construction and reconstruction, remains a focal point of community activity.

The state park, and plaza, and the many of the remaining 19th century buildings that surround the Plaza, date from the early to mid-1800's.  Many of the family names associated with these early California buildings are still important names within the community life of San Juan Bautista.  It is for the preservation of the histories of these early California families, and many of the descendants and later settlers of the San Juan Valley, that the San Juan Bautista Historical Society was formed.

If you would like to contribute to this effort, please do contact us with your family information.  We would eventually like to build a complete history of the community life of San Juan Bautista.