Santa Barbara Historical Museum facts for kids
The Historic Adobe (1836)
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| Established | 1932 |
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| Location | 136 E. De la Guerra Street, Santa Barbara, California, 93101 |
| Visitors | 40 thousand annually (2009-2010)
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The Santa Barbara Historical Museum is a cool place in Santa Barbara, California, U.S.. It shows off amazing items from different cultures. You can see things from the Chumash, Spanish, Mexican, early American settlers (Yankees), and Chinese people.
The museum has artifacts, photographs, furniture, and clothes. Some of these items are very old, going back to the 1400s! The museum is located at 136 East De la Guerra Street. It's right in the middle of historic downtown Santa Barbara. The building was built in 1965 by the Santa Barbara Historical Society.
Contents
Discovering Santa Barbara's Past
How the Museum Started
The Santa Barbara Historical Society began in October 1932. It was a group of people who wanted to learn about Santa Barbara's history. Their goal was to find, keep, and show historical items. They also wanted to study the history of the city and county.
At first, the Society used a room in the Santa Barbara County Courthouse. This was their first space to show off their collections. For about ten years, they focused on gathering and organizing artifacts and documents.
Growing and Moving
In 1942, the Society started letting individuals become members. People could join and pay a small fee. This helped the group grow a lot and collect even more items. The next year, in 1943, the Society became an official non-profit organization.
As more people joined, the Society did more activities. In 1947, they published their first book. It was about trade with China in early California. The Society soon needed a bigger space than the courthouse room.
Katherine Bagg Hastings offered her home, the Trussell-Winchester Adobe. This historic house was built in 1854. Mrs. Hastings arranged for the house to go to the Society after she passed away. This happened in 1955.
Finding a Permanent Home
The search for a lasting home for the Society continued through the 1950s. They even used part of the Santa Barbara Mission for exhibits. A special agreement was signed in 1954. The Society stayed at the Old Mission for eleven years.
Building the Museum: 1950s and 1960s
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In April 1955, the Society started publishing a journal called Noticias. This quarterly magazine is all about the Santa Barbara area. It has been published ever since!
In 1959, the Society saved the Judge Charles Fernald Mansion. This large, fourteen-room house was built by an important person from the late 1800s. It was going to be torn down. The Society's director, W. Edwin Gledhill, helped raise money to buy the house. They moved it next to the Trussell-Winchester Adobe. After a lot of work to fix it up, Fernald House opened as a historic home museum in 1962.
A Dream Comes True
The dream of a permanent museum building came true on February 28, 1965. This is when the museum at 136 East De la Guerra Street was officially opened. In 1961, Santa Barbara County gave the Society a long-term lease for land downtown. They started a fundraising campaign to build the museum.
In 1963, construction began on the adobe museum building. It has a huge space for exhibits, offices, and storing collections. In 1964, the Society also got two more historic adobe buildings next to the museum. These were the 1817 Covarrubias Adobe and the Historic Adobe from around 1836. The Covarrubias Adobe is used for talks and meetings.
In the 1960s, the Gledhill Library was also dedicated in 1967. It was named after W. Edwin Gledhill and his wife Andriette. They both worked for the Society for many years.
Modern Museum: Growth and Improvements
New Programs and Exhibits
In 1981, the Society started an oral history program. This means they record interviews with people who have lived in Santa Barbara for a long time. They have recorded over 500 interviews so far!
The museum staff grew in the mid-1980s. They started to specialize in different areas, like caring for collections or planning exhibits. In 2000, the museum began a big project to update its grounds and building. This included a $3.5 million project to install a new air system. This system helps protect the old artifacts.
The museum also completely redesigned its exhibit galleries. A main exhibit called "The Story of Santa Barbara" opened to the public. It shows over 450 years of Santa Barbara's history. In 2017, the museum expanded again, adding the Edward Borein Gallery.
