Confessions of a Western Wino: California Gold: The Mission Santa Barbara

A somber reminder inside
the Mission.

Santa Barbara is one of the best beach communities in all of California. It has a beautiful harbor, a pleasant downtown area with a good walking score, a thriving wine scene, and it does well to keep in touch with its history, both Spanish and native. While there is a Chumash Reservation not far from the coast and old native cave paintings can be found atop the hills looking over the sea, one of the best collections of native artifacts can be found at the Santa Barbara Mission.

The Mission, sitting on a hill just north of town, was founded by Padre Fermín Lasuén in December of 1786. It is the tenth mission for the religious conversion of the indigenous local Chumash-Barbareño tribe. Many elements of the Mission's extensive water treatment system, all built by Chumash labor under the direction of the Franciscans (including aqueducts, two reservoirs, a filter house, and a hydro-powered gristmill) remain to this day, as do huts, gardening tools, textiles, and trinkets, all hand-crafted by native hands, much of it centuries ago. The reservoir, which was built in 1806 by the expedient of damming a canyon, had been a functioning component of the city's water system until 1993. The original fountain and lavadero are also intact near the entrance to the Mission.

The interior garden and courtyard.

Mission Santa Barbara's name comes from the legend of Saint Barbara, a girl who was supposedly beheaded by her father for following the Christian Faith. The early missionaries built three different chapels during the first few years, each larger than the previous one.

It was only after the great Santa Barbara Earthquake on December 21, 1812, which destroyed the existing buildings, that the construction on the current Mission was begun. It was completed and then dedicated in 1820.

Walkway around the courtyard.

Like many of the California Missions, Santa Barbara has a chapel, a garden courtyard, rooms for study and sleep. Unlike many of the other Missions, Santa Barbara has a natural beauty that even other places in California are jealous of. The flowers seem bigger, brighter. The air smells sweeter. The breeze feels more gentle.

The Mission grounds occupy a rise between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Ynez Mountains. They were consecrated by Father Fermín Lasuén, who had taken over the presidency of the California mission chain upon the death of Mission founder Father Presidente Junípero Serra. Mission Santa Barbara is the only mission to remain under the leadership of the Franciscan Friars since its founding, and today is still a parish church of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.

The Mission Santa Barbara

Walking through the exhibits and the active portions of the Mission, I thought of the sad irony that now exists. The irony that that the little we know about the native people who lived on this continent prior to European contact is due primarily to the Europeans themselves who wound up running them off.

It seems native artifacts tend to be best preserved and shared with the rest of the world in places where the native people themselves were actually subjugated. Books, movies, and Mission exhibits all give great insight to native life, but the shame is this desire to learn more about the locals arrived a bit too late.

Inside the chapel.

Santa Barbara has a lot to offer visitors coming in either for a long weekend or a long-term vacation. It can be easy to give in to the surf and wine and air of relaxation. But a stop at the Mission is not to be missed. There is a lot of history on this site and the church is a great place to see a piece of it.