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Tours
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Furniture v
Paintings
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Ceilings v
Tile Work
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Foundation
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Projects
For almost 160 years this site has been the home
of local government and a place of civic pride and celebration. Visitors from
around the world come to see the courthouse, mural room and grounds.
Hundreds get married in the Mural Room or in the Garden every year. The
County Board of
Supervisors
caused the construction of this, now historic courthouse in
1926, after the smaller Greek-Revival courthouse was damaged in an
earthquake of the previous year.
 Click to View  |
The building was dedicated on August 14, 1929 in
with the ceremonial setting
of a bronze medallion provided by the Native Sons of Golden West. The
Supervisors mixed the ingredients of water from each of the
California missions with sand and gravel from each of the counties in California on the main
stage with a packed crowd of residents and visitor's looking on during
Old Spanish Days Fiesta |
Courthouse Details
The courthouse complex is comprised of
four buildings totaling 150,000 square feet. There is a full basement that contains the
mechanical equipment, parking and storage. The Jail Wing is no longer used for
prisoner holding. The jail (upper part of aerial picture to the
upper-right) has a total of seven floors.
When constructed in 1929 there were just two courtrooms located in the Figueroa Wing, with other county government offices. In 1967, when non-court functions of county government moved into a new building across the street and the vacanted space was remodeled into additional court rooms and support spaces for court functions.
Santa Barbara is named in honor of
Saint Barbara.
Weddings at the Courthouse
So you are interested in having your wedding at the Santa Barbara
Courthouse...here
is some handy information that is a must read.
Courthouse Historic Landmarking
On Tuesday,
April 5, 2005 the Secretary of the Interior, the Hon. Gale Norton, signed
the designation memo officially naming the Santa Barbara Courthouse a
National Historic Landmark! updates.
Read More
Thanks to everyone who sent support letters to the Park Service.
Past Restoration Projects
Mural Room Windows
The windows and draperies in the Mural Room are currently undergoing
restoration...the project will take about 3 weeks at a cost of $12,000.
Hall of Records:
The Hall of Records is undergoing an historic rehabilitation
that includes the the restoration of its skylight. The glass panels have
been restored in this historic skylight. Read More
Department One Ceiling:
The failing ceiling in one of two original courtrooms will finally
get the help it needs. Work is progressing at a steady pase Read
More
Courthouse Flagpole :
Restoration
Update: The flagpole is up and looking proud. Rededication happened on
Monday, June 14, 2004. Flag Day. Read the details
Santa Barbara County Courthouse
(situated on a full city block in downtown Santa Barbara)
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| Garden Side | Jail Wing | Arch | Anacapa Wing | Fountain |
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Santa Barbara Courthouse Legacy Foundation February 2005: The Courthouse gained a new partner in the effort to restore this most beautify and important civic sites...the Santa Barbara Courthouse Legacy Foundation. Find out more about the Foundation at www.courthouselegacyfoundation.org |
Courthouse Plantings
The plantings around the Santa
Barbara County Courthouse comprise one of the most outstanding collections
of palms, specimen trees, and exotic plantings from more than twenty-five
countries and six continents.
Education and Research
The
Docent Council maintains an archive of materials on or about the courthouse.
The County Architects Office also maintains an archive on all county owned
buildings, including the Historic Courthouse. These archives are available
to researchers by appointment.
Jail Wing
The rarely seen Jail wing is captured in a few photos and text
description for all to enjoy.
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Patricia Gebhard and Kathryn Masson collaborated to create this wonderful book covering one of the Countries greatest civic buildings. Photographs by James Chen. This book is available at the Docent Information Booth. |
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