Saint Teresa of Avila is a small pretty Roman Catholic church. It sits on a hill in the village of Bodega (a few miles from Bodega Bay). It’s a pretty white wooden church which was constructed by Jasper O’Farrell, a famed San Francisco businessman who donated the land and redwood lumber for its construction in 1860. It was crafted by shipbuilders and gifted to the Archbishop of San Francisco.
The population of the area continued to grow in the years after the church opened, mostly Irish and Catholic. The church needed to be expanded so in 1872 the structure was cut in half, the halves moved apart, and expansion happened; a choir and steeple were added at this time. The church was restored in 1955 and it was declared a State Historic Landmark in 1968. Saint Teresa is the oldest Catholic Church in Sonoma County and is still in use today.
Ansel Adams took a black and white photo of Saint Teresa of Avila in 1953, which made it famous. This was Adam’s’ “Church and Road” photo, and it was this photo that inspired my wife and I to visit the church.
The photo below was used as last weekend’s One Clue Mystery photo. It was recognized by our talented travel sleuth, George G — congrats as always, George!
Saint Teresa of Avila is located next door to the Potter School, which was the setting for the schoolhouse scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s film “The Birds”. Hitchcock attended church services at St. Teresa of Avila during the filming of his movie.
The California quail shown below was very interested in our movement around St. Teresa. Perhaps it was another fan of Adams and Hitchcock?
