Mission Corpus Christi de la Ysleta, once a New Mexican mission, is today considered to be the first mission in what is now Texas. The mission was established by Antonio de Otermín, governor of New Mexico, and Fray Francisco de Ayeta in 1682 and was maintained by Franciscans for the purpose of Christianizing the Tigua Indians. The Tigua came as refugees and captives with Otermín on his retreat to the El Paso area after his unsuccessful attempt to recover New Mexico in the winter of 1681–82 following the Pueblo Revolt. La Misión de la Ysleta del Sur, consecrated in 1682, was built by the Tigua (Tewa, Tiwa) speaking peoples originally from Isleta and Sandia Pueblos in what is today New Mexico and administered by Franciscan priests. The mission was located east of present day El Paso, Texas. Dedicated to the Tiguas' patron, St. Anthony of Padua, the pueblo and mission became the nucleus of a community that has existed for 300 years—the oldest continuously occupied settlement in Texas. Today, Ysleta Mission is on the National Register of Historic Places and is located along the El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail.
