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Portolá Expedition of 1769
Under orders from King Carlos III of Spain, Gaspar de Portolá i Rovira and Franciscan Father John Crespi marched north from San Diego on 14 July 1769 with
sixty-three soldiers and one hundred mules. Their destination was Monterey Bay, but they missed the fog-shrouded bay and instead became the first
documented Europeans to see the San Francisco Bay. Just seven years later, Spain founded Misión San Francisco de Asís
on 29 June 1776.
The California Coastal Trail traces much of the Portolá's route, and twelve California Landmarks in San Mateo
County commemorate the expedition:
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