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 The capilla (chapel) at Mission Santa Barbara. | |
  Location in California  Mission Santa Barbara (the United States) | |
| Location | 2201 Laguna St. Santa Barbara, California 93105 |
|---|---|
| Name as founded | La Misión de La Señora Bárbara, Virgen y Mártir [1] |
| English translation | The Mission of the Lady Bárbara, Virgin and Martyr |
| Patron | Saint Barbara of Greece[2] |
| Nickname(s) | "Queen of the Missions" [3] |
| Founding date | December 4, 1786 [4] |
| Founding priest(s) | Father Fermín Lasuén [5] |
| Built | 1820, 1925 (repair) |
| Architect | Ripoll, Father Antonio |
| Architectural style(s) | Colonial, Other, Spanish colonial |
| Founding Order | Tenth mission[2] |
| Headquarters of the Alta California Mission System | 1833–1846 [6] |
| Military district | Second[7] |
| Native tribe(s) Spanish name(s) | Chumash Barbareño, Canaliño |
| Native place name(s) | Xana'yan [8] |
| Baptisms | 5,556[9] |
| Marriages | 1,486[9] |
| Burials | 3,936[9] |
| Secularized | 1834[2] |
| Returned to the Church | 1865[2] |
| Governing body | Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles |
| Current use | Parish Church |
| Designated | October 15, 1966[10] |
| Reference no. | 66000237[10] |
| Designated | October 9, 1960[11] |
| Reference no. |
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| Website | |
| http://www.santabarbaramission.org | |
Mission Santa Barbara (Spanish: Misión de Santa Bárbara) is a Spanish mission in Santa Barbara, California, United States. Often referred to as the 'Queen of the Missions', it was founded by Padre Fermín Lasuén for the Franciscan order on December 4, 1786, the feast day of Saint Barbara, as the tenth mission of what would later become 21 missions in Alta California.
Mission Santa Barbara, like other California missions, was built as part of a broader effort to consolidate the Spanish claim on Alta California in the face of threats from rival empires. In attempting to do this, Spain sought to turn local indigenous tribes into good Spanish citizens (for Mission Santa Barbara, this was the Chumash-Barbareño tribe). This required religious conversion and integration into the Spanish colonial economy – for the local Chumash people, the environmental changes wrought by the Mission's large herd of livestock, combined with epidemics and military force, meant that tribal members often had little choice but to join the mission system, resulting in a type of forced servitude.
The mission is the namesake of the city of Santa Barbara as well as of Santa Barbara County and comes from the legend of Saint Barbara, a girl who was beheaded by her father for following the Christian faith.
The Mission grounds occupy a rise between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Ynez Mountains, and were consecrated by Father Fermín Lasuén, who had taken over the presidency of the California mission chain upon the death of Father Junípero Serra. Mission Santa Barbara is, along with mission San Luis Rey, the only mission to remain under the leadership of the Franciscan Friars since its founding, and today is a parish church of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
- ^ Leffingwell, p. 61
- ^ a b c d Krell, p. 187
- ^ Ruscin, p. 89
- ^ Yenne, p. 98
- ^ Ruscin, p. 196
- ^ Yenne, p. 186
- ^ Forbes, p. 202
- ^ Ruscin, p. 195
- ^ a b c Krell, p. 315: as of December 31, 1832; information adapted from Engelhardt's Missions and Missionaries of California.
- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ "Santa Barbara Mission". National Historic Landmark Quicklinks. National Park Service. Archived from the original on October 11, 2012. Retrieved March 20, 2012.
- ^ "Mission Santa Barbara". Office of Historic Preservation, California State Parks. Retrieved November 24, 2012.