Santa Barbara Historical Museum

The Santa Barbara Historical Museum is one of the cultural gems of Santa Barbara, with a collection of more than 80,000 irreplaceable objects and artifacts of significance relating to Santa Barbara’s extraordinary past. There is no better resource for discovery of local history than this beautiful museum. Constructed in 1965 by the Santa Barbara Historical Society, the Museum has been the primary repository of Santa Barbara’s collective cultural heritage and ethnic diversity for over three decades. A tour of the Museum enables visitors to see a wide array of unique paintings, objects, photographs, furnishings and textiles dating from the 15th century. Santa Barbara’s rich past is represented with artifacts from Chumash, Spanish, Mexican, “Yankee” and Chinese cultures. The Gledhill Library contains rare literary and visual documents including 70,000 historic photographs. Two early 19th century buildings, the 1817 Casa Covarrubias and the 1836 Historic Adobe are adjacent to the Museum. The Fernald Mansion, a fourteen room Queen Anne Victorian, is currently closed for renovation. Important Information For Visitors Admission is free, $7 donation suggested, $5 for students and seniors. The Museum is open Tues.- Sat. 10am-5pm, Sun. 12-5pm, closed Mondays. The Gledhill Library is open for research Tues.-Fri.10am-4pm; First Saturday of each month, 10am-1 pm; closed weekends/Mondays. The museum is located at 136 E. De la Guerra Street, on the corner of Santa Barbara St. and De la Guerra.