After Mexico won independence from Spain in 1822, the friars were expelled from the country and the missions were confiscated. San Xavier remained for years without a priest, and the buildings were used for stables, barns, or barracks. At this time the faithful Indians buried many of the ornaments and statues to prevent their destruction in Apache raids. In 1859, following the Gadsden Purchase, whereby the United States Government purchased from Mexico a large strip of land, San Xavier was brought within the boundaries of the United States. The Arizona missions were put in the diocese of Santa Fe, New Mexico. When the Indians heard that a priest was returning they brought forth the statues and other sacred articles, rang the long silent mission bells and brought their children to be baptized. The church of San Xavier was the only mission not in complete ruin. Extensive repairs were made on the building. Although the mission withstood the earthquake of 1887, a period of rainy weather caused damage to its walls and ceilings. Restoration work, for the most part by Indian labor, was begun in 1906. Old pictures were studied in an effort to retain the lines of the mission as faithfully as possible. The work was so skillfully done that in many instances it is impossible to distinguish between the old and new construction. The exteriors of the mission and dependent buildings were newly plastered and the decorations repaired. Some changes were made in the walls of the atrium and in the patio, which had been constructed as a measure of defense against the attacks of Apaches. Additional dormitory and class rooms were constructed. In 1908 the “Grotto of Lourdes,” a replica of the shrine at Lourdes, France, was constructed on the “Little Mountain of the Holy Cross” just east of the mission. In accordance with the usual custom of the Spanish friars in selecting a building site for a mission, San Xavier del Bac occupies a position in the very heart of the desert, slightly elevated above the surrounding terrain and hemmed in by distant mountains. The majestic mass of the church with its tiny mortuary chapel to the left, its walled atrium fronting a spacious plaza, and its L-shaped dormitory and patio adjoining the church proper at the right, forms an imposing architectural ensemble. The church faces directly south, contrary to the general rule that the apse should be to the east. San Xavier is the best preserved and the only one of the old Spanish missions still being used. For two centuries and more the Indians have been coming to this shrine, exemplifying their faith in Christianity as first introduced by the kindly padre Kino.