 As a consequence, Juan Maria Salvatierra, S.J., was the lone missionary in establishing Mission Loreto among its Monqui inhabitants in 1697.Piccolo crossed the Gulf of California to be Salvatierra's assistant about a month later.Piccolo founded the second Baja California mission, San Francisco Javier, among the Cochimí, in 1699 and served there until 1701, when he abandoned the mission, due to threats from the indigenous population.