The first recorded European sighting of San Francisco Bay was on November 4, 1769, when Spanish explorer Gaspar de Portolà sighted the golden gate strait while on a coastal exploration with a group of soldiers and missionaries. The strait was named after St. Francis of Assisi, the founder of the Franciscan order. Franciscan friars were the first to settle in the area, establishing missions at Dolores (in present-day San Francisco) and San Rafael (in present-day Marin County) in 1776. The Spanish colonization of San Francisco did not last long, however, as the area was soon claimed by the Mexicans after they won independence from Spain in 1821.
