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Entrance ond central area, proposed new headquorters.

The Building Issue 2

H!stor>- of Santa Barbara Historical Society Future of tbc Society . . . What Will It Be? The Society’s Restoration Projects

VOL. VIM, No. 1

.13 ..16

SUPPLEMENT, SPRING, 1962

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Rcprcxiuwii from .in ctuhiny by Henry Cli.ipiii.in Ford.

The Fcrnold House

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Reprcxliicccl from an elciiiiur by Henry Cliapnian Ford.

Santo Barbara Mission West Wing

N€TICIA5 QUARTERLY BULLETIN OF THE SANTA BARBARA HISTORICAL SOCIETY MAILING ADDRESS; OLD MISSION, SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA

Introduction After eight years of the most cordial relations with the Franciscan Fathers of the Old Mission, the Santa Barbara Historical Society’s lease soon will expire; and so we are faced with the problem of finding new quarters. During these eight years, our membership has grown very much, and the interest in the Society throughout the Community has increased most gratifyingly. The collections of historical materials of all kinds have become so great that they not only have over-filled our present rooms in the Old Mission but the upper stories of the Gledhills’ large residence on Glendessary Lane as well. Obviously, our new quarters must be considerably larger than have been those we have had in the past.

With the most helpful interest in the Society’s well being, the County Board of Supervisors have given us a long lease on the now vacant south corner of the intersection of Santa Barbara and De la Guerra Streets; and here the Directors of the Society propose to build our new home. This corner is sometimes known as the “Sam Stanwood Museum Corner”. Lo cated as it is almost in the middle of “Pueblo Viejo”, it not only is a convenient and an appropriate site for the new home of the Historical So ciety but its possession amounts to a very considerable benefaction to the Building Committee.

Mr. Robert Ingle Hoyt has been commissioned to draw plans for and to supervise the building of the new structure. When completed, this new home will be adequate to meet all our foreseeable needs and, designed as it is in conformity with the traditions of our community and with the par ticular atmosphere of the part of the City in which it is to be located, it also will be a handsome addition to our architecture.

The Society, through generous bequests that have come to it in the past and through expected membership dues and sums from other sources, has the means to maintain this building once it is constructed; but it does not have the funds to meet building costs. It is hoped that the members of the Society and the many friends whom we have made throughout the Com munity, and even beyond our immediate borders, will approve these pians and will respond generously when their financial assistance is solicited.

In an effort to acquaint the Community with the history, past accomplishments, and the planned enlargement of public service of the Society for the future years, this special “Building Issue” of Noticias is being dis tributed. In it, as will be seen at a glance, is a brief history of the Society 1

written by a former president and the man who, probably more than any other single person, was responsible for the carrying on of the Society in those early, difficult days when the interest of the community in its past was at a low ebb, Mr. Paul Sweetser. A second story, by Wilberta M. Finley, the editor who initiated the publication of Noticias and for some years, almost unassisted, carried it forward, tells of the Society’s TrussellWinchester Adobe and of the Fernald House. The third article, which is a glance into our future, is prepared by the Director, Mr. W. Edwin Cledhill, who. along with his wife, Andriette, has done so very much to bring the Society to its present condition of well being and wide service.

Edward S. Spaulding

History of Santa Barbara Historical Society

By Paul Sweetser The Santa Barbara Historical Society was first organized as a voluntary association in the month of October, 1932. It was incorporated as a non profit educational organization under the laws of the State of California on June 7. 1943. This brief statement of facts falls far short of telling the story of the devoted effort of many individuals over the years which has brought about the development of the Society from a small, loosely organized group of individuals, to an organization which ranks among the finest and best organized historical societies, not only in California, but throughout our country.

Santa Barbarans have ever been conscious of the fascinating historic background of their city, and even before the turn of the century, several fairly accurate and complete histories of the beginnings of our city had been written. However, for many years, no steps were taken towards the organi zation of any group devoted to historical research and the collection of his toric artifacts and source material.

Persons interested in the animal and plant life of the area, both as it currently existed and as it was revealed by fossil remains, had organized the Natural History Society of Santa Barbara, probably before the year 1900.

This organization was principally interested in scientific matters concerning the area. It was kept alive largely through the efforts of Dr. M. M. Yates and his wife, who survived him. These two individuals kept alive the interest in this field for many years. They resided and maintained a small museum in an adobe building located on the site of the present Lobero Hotel. Not withstanding the fact that the interest of this organization and of Dr. Yates and his wife principally centered in matters scientific, they did, nevertheless, collect some historic artifacts and source material. At Mrs. Yates’ death, most of this material was given to the State Normal School of Manual Arts and Home Economics, which was the forerunner of the Santa Barbara Col lege of the University of California. Most important materials were later given to the Santa Barbara Historical Society by officers of the school.

In the year 1915, at the Panama Pacific Exposition in San Francisco, an exhibit of scientific materials and historic artifacts from the Santa Barbara

2

PAUL SWEETSER

area was arranged, some of the material being furnished by the Natural History Society. The exhibit, however, was designated as that of “The Santa Barbara Historical Society”, and a certificate of participation is now in the possession of our Society.

A number of organizations that had as a part of their programs a definite interest in various phases of history, either of the United Stales as a whole or of California, had taken part in one way or another in the de velopment of interest in the history of Santa Barbara and of California and more particularly, in the historical background of Santa Barbara. Among these groups were the Native Sons and Daughters of the Golden West, the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Fathers of the Old Mission.

Most of these organizations, at one time or another, marked one or more historic places or buildings. Notably, among these, was that of the marking of the boundaries of the Presidio where they crossed the lines of existing streets and of one of Fremont’s purported headquarters on the site of the St. Charles Hotel on State Street; also the marking by the D.A.R. of the historic Sycamore tree at the intersection of Quinientos and Milpas Streets, an — d of the Mission aqueduct and the camp site of Fremont on the Court House grounds by the same organization. The activity of these groups con tributed much of interest in historical matters and brought to the attention of a considerable number of people, portions of Santa Barbara history In the year 1924, the first “Old Spanish Days” fiesta was held. The next celebration came in 1926, as there was no celebration during the earth quake year of 1925. With the planning of the 1926 fiesta, which its promoters hoped would be the forerunner of a definite annual presentation, there came about an increasing interest in the history of Santa Barbara and in the his tory of the cultures which combined to form its background. Much time and effort was devoted to the searching out of an accurate story of the 3

on Saint Barlanding of Cabrillo, the naming of the Channel by Viscaino bara’s day, the founding of the Presidio and the building of the Mission.

Likewise, the story of the first coming of the Gringo to this area, the arrival of Fremont and the transition from Spanish rule through that of Mexico to the final possession of California and of Santa Barbara by the United States of America, became the subject of careful study. To the founders of the Fiesta must be given much credit for calling new attention to Santa Baibara’s past.

In the early part of the year 1932, outside institutions interested in the collection of source material having to do with California’s history, sent representatives to Santa Barbara to seek out, and if possible, to obtain source materials relative to this area and more particularly, materials covas a center of the ering the periods when Santa Barbara was of importance State’s government under Mexican rule. This circumstance came to the atten tion of Mrs. Frances B. Linn, the librarian of the City’s library. Mrs. Linn immediately realized that these organizations, however important and valu able their work, would, if allowed to do so, take from Santa Barbara much of its valuable historic material, particularly that covering secular matters.

She called this fact to the attention of interested groups and a number of meetings of representatives were held in an effort to devise a plan with which to meet the situation. Two things were necessary: First, formation of an organization which could command sufficient confidence in the community to induce the possessors f historic artifacts and materials to give them to the organization in order that they might be preserved for posterity; and second, some place for the storing and protection of these materials, it w ill be remembered that the year 1932 was a year of many uncertainties. It was felt that a new organization seeking a large membership should not be launched at that time, and it was finally determined that an association be formed consisting of representatives of the interested organi zations in the community. Accordingly, in October, 1932, Articles of Asso ciation were signed by representatives of the Native Sons and Daughters of the Golden West, the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Public Library, The State College, the City Schools System and the Old Mission.

Among those signing the articles were Dr. William Ellison, Anna E. McCaughey (later Dr. McCaughey), Frances B. Linn, Fred H. Schauer, Paul G. Sweetser, and Rev. Fr. Felix Pudlowski.

The articles set forth the purposes of the organization as follows: 1. To encourage and foster study and research in the field of history surrounding and existing in the city and county of Santa Barbara.

2. To collect and make available to persons and organizations inter ested therein, original materials and compiled materials having to do with the history of Santa Barbara City, County and vicinity.

3. To collect and preserve historical documents and objects and to provide for their exhibition.

4. To secure the loan of such historical documents and objects that can not be acquired by the organization and to provide for a temporary or permanent exhibition thereof.

5. To prepare and provide research and study programs for organiza tions interested in historical research.

4

The ofi’icers elected were Mr. Paul G. Sweetser, President, Mr. Fred H. Schauer, Vice-President, Miss Elizabeth Mason, Secretary-Treasurer. Miss Mason was also designated “custodian” of the properties of the Society, including the hoped for donations of historic material.

The next problem to be solved was that of securing a permanent head quarters for the association and for the storage of its properties.

In the original plan of the Santa Barbara Court House a large room in the Court House wing directly northwest of the Anacapa Street arch was designed as a place for an historic museum. The establishment of such a museum was one of the projects of Mr. Samuel J. Stanwood, who was the supervisor of the Second Supervisoral District and had charge of the Court House and largely influenced the plan of its construction.

At the time of the organization of the Santa Barbara Historical Society, however, the room was occupied by one of the many relief” organizations then operating in Santa Barbara. Notwithstanding this situation, Mr. Stan wood was contacted by ofiicers of the new Historical Society and he assured the group that as soon as the planned museum room became vacant by reason of the expected termination of its us by the “relief” group, the Society might be installed therein. As a temporary expedient, he offered the then vacant “tower” room immediately over the circular staircase in the Court House, the room being reached only by a continuation of that stairway from the second floor of the building. Donations were secured from the various member organizations, and a table, some benches and some cabinets were purchased. Then began the never ending process of collecting ma terials, of cataloguing them and of storing them for their protection.

The oranization had little financial support as it had no membership dues other than a small fee charged to each of the participating organizations.

Miss Elizabeth Mason, whose title was at some time changed to that of “curator”, devoted long hours to visiting members of the old families, to collecting from them many historic artifacts and some source material. It was to her efforts that the Society now owes its possession of the priceless Covarrubias papers covering the Mexican and early American periods. Not only did Miss Mason contribute her physical effort, hut she gave richly of her own research, particularly concerning the life of the Canalino Indians and the development of the Mission and Presidio water system.

From the date of its organization for a period of something over ten years, the Society changed little in character. Representatives of the asso ciated groups changed from year to year. Two new organizations were interested. The Art Museum sent as its representative, Mr. Donald Bear, and the Museum of Natural History sent Dr. Arthur S. Coggeshall.

Early in 1942, Mrs. John Russel Hastings, who was born Katharine Bagg in Santa Barbara County, returned to Santa Barbara and took up her abode in the home of her mother in what is now known as the TrussellWinchester Adobe at 412 West Montecito Street. Mrs. Hastings had been associated with Historical societies in New England and New York State and immediately sought out the officers of the Santa Barbara Historical Association for the purpose of joining the organization and of becoming active in its program. For some time the organization had had under con sideration the possibility of a change in its framework to provide expansion .5

of its membership by the admission of individual members. A committee was appointed to make recommendations for the revision of the Articles of Association to provide for individual membership. The articles were eventu ally amended along these lines and classes of membership and the schedule of dues for each were provided. As a result of this change, the membership of the Society was increased to a considerable degree and also, the Society’s acquisition of library material and of artifacts was accelerated.

By the year 1943, interest in the incorporation of the Society under California law was developed; a committee was appointed to study the possibilities, and at a meeting held at the home of Mrs. Katharine Bagg Hastings on the 23rd of March of that year, a study of the plan of incor poration was made and the group authorized the committee to prepare the necessary Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws.

On the 20th of April, 1943, at a special meeting of the members of the Santa Barbara Historical Association, a voluntary organization, there being a quorum present, it was moved by Miss Elizabeth Mason and sec onded by Dr. William H. Ellison, that the tentative Articles of Incorpora tion presented at that meeting by the committee be adopted and that the Santa Barbara Historical Association, a voluntary organization, be incor porated and that the twelve persons previously elected as Directors of the said voluntary organization be appointed to serve as the first Directors of the corporation upon its incorporation. It was further provided in the mo tion that all of the assets of the voluntary association be turned over to the new corporation.

Accordingly, the Articles of Incorporation were signed and filed, and on the 7th day of June, 1943, the organization became a California non profit corporation. The twelve persons elected as the first Directors, who likewise signed as the incorporators, were as follows: Barbara S. Whittaker Mildred L. Williamson Fred H. Sehauer Paul G. Sweetser

Sallie Corning Black Mabel S. Erwin Katharine Bagg Hastings MacKenzie Brown William 11. Ellison Donald J. Bear

Arthur S. Coggeshall Fr. Eric O’Brien, O.F.M.

On the 21st day of June, 1943, the first meeting of the Board of Di rectors of the newly established corporation was held. Tentative By-Laws, which had been prepared, were presented to the meeting and as appears from the Minutes, there was a lively discussion concerning them and many changes and amendments were offered.

The Board did, however, adopt set of By-Laws which served the cor poration for many years. The meeting also elected the first officers of the corporation, which were Mr. Paul G. Sweetser, President; Fred H. Sehauer, Vice-President: and Mrs. Katharine Bagg Hastings, Secretary-Treasurer.

These officers served until January 8, 1945, when Dr. MacKenzie Brown was elected })resident.

Since the incorporation .the following persons have served in the office of president: 6

Paul G. Sweetser, from June, 1943 to January, 1945.

Dr. McKenzie Brown for the year 1945.

Dr. William H. Ellison for the years 1946 and 1947.

Mr. T. Wilson Dibblee for the years 1948 and 1949.

Mr. Howard W. Rowe for the year 1950.

Mr. Francis Price from November 12, 1952 to January, 1956.

Mr. E. S. Conner for the years 1956 and 1957.

Mr. Thomas J. McDermott for the years 1958, 1959, and 1960.

Our present President, Dr. Hilmar 0. Koefod, was elected in Janu ary, 1961.

No annual meetings were held for the years 1951 and 1952 and no immediate successor to Mr. Rowe, who resigned from his position as librarian and left Santa Barbara, was elected.

Mr. Hugh J. Weldon, who had served as vice-president in many ad ministrations, performed the duties of the office during the period from January, 1951 to November 12, 1952.

It would be far beyond the scope of this article to set forth all the many things which took place during the periods covered by all the administra tions listed above. We can only mention some of the more important things which affected the life of the Society.

Mrs. Katharine Bagg Hastings, whose background of interest in the New England historical societies greatly influenced her activities and con tribution to the Society, was most instrumental in expanding its membership among persons of similar interests. She was largely responsible for the So ciety’s fine collection of genealogical material and of many important vol umes, which early formed the nucleus of the Society’s present library.

It should be remembered that the original purposes of the Society, as set forth in its first Articles of Association, had to do mainly with the history of the Santa Barbara area. The Articles of Incorporation, when filed, set forth the purposes of the organization in almost identical language with that used in the original constating document. It early became ap parent that some general principles should be laid down covering the scope of the Society’s activities, in order to reconcile the point of view of the original founders of the organization and their immediate successors with those of the newer members.

No amendment to the Articles changing the statement of purposes was ever adopted, but by tacit agreement, the program of the Society has ex panded through the years to include the collection of materials having to do with the background of the principal cultures which contributed to the establishment and growth of California generally and of the Santa Barbara community in particular.

Because of the fact that the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History had an established program of research into the life of the pre-historic peo ples of the area, it was determined that the historical society would not enter this field, but would confine itself to the period which began with the first coming of the Europeans to this area. Mrs. Hastings was responsible for the collection of much important material by the Society, the most im portant of which was the acquisition of the Alpheus Thompson papers 7

through the bequest of Mrs. Mildred Lacy Williamson. There were also secured many pictures and items of interest from this same source.

In 1947 the Society published “China Trade Days in California” by Dr. D. MacKenzie Brown, who drew most of his information from the Thompson papers.

From the date of its organization down to the time of its incorporation, the Society’s headquarters had been in the “tower room” in the Court House. Meetings of the officers were generally held in that room. With the expansion of the various relief programs which followed the depression, the quarters designed for a museum in the Court House were continually occupied and became the permanent offices of the County Welfare Depart ment, thus cutting off all hope of the establishment of the permanent mu seum and headquarters in the Court House.

The museum in the tower room gradually became filled with many arti facts and was kept open to some extent, largely through the assistance of volunteers from the Native Daughters of the Golden West and Daughters of the American Revolution. It was visited by a large number of people, not only from Santa Barbara and the vicinity, but from other parts of the country.

Materials belonging to the Society were stored not only in the “tower room”, but in the basement of the Court House, in the public library, in the houses of Miss Mason and Mrs. Hastings, and later in the Santa Bar bara Art Museum. The “tower room as a meeting place was difficult of access to many of the Society’s members. After its incorporation, the general headquarters of the Society came to be established in Mrs. Hastings’ home in the Trussell-Winchester adobe at 412 West Montecito Street. Meetings of the Board of Directors were held there and also in the conference room of the public library. Annual meetings and social events were held for a number of years at the offices of the Santa Barbara Foundation in the HillCarrillo adobe on East Carrillo Street, but the Society still continued to be without a home. It was apparent even at this early time in the Society’s life that it must look forward to acquiring a home of its own.

Shortly after the formation of the corporation, Mrs. Hastings suggested to the officers that she might be willing to donate the Trussell-Winchester property to the Society upon the condition that the little adobe home be preserved. This proposal was considered on many separate occasions by the officers and members of the Board of Directors, it being understood that Mrs. Hastings would transfer title to the Society of the property, retaining only the right to its use and occupancy during her lifetime.

The minutes of the annual meeting for the year 1944 contain reports of dealings with Mr. Chester L. Carjola, concerning the possibility of erecting a building on what was then a vacant portion of Mrs. Hastings’ property.

The plan then was to reproduce the Alpheus Thompson adobe, which was later known as the St. Charles Hotel. No serious effort to carry this plan into effect was made. Although there was constant discussion of the possi bility of constructing some sort of building on the Hastings property, nothing further took place for a considerable period of time.

When Mr. T. W. Dibblee came to office in 1948, he became extremely interested in the possibility of providing a permanent home for the Society 8

and Mrs. Hastings’ proposal again came under consideration. The whole matter was referred to a committee composed of the Finance and Building Committees and the Scope, Plan and Advisory Committee.

The joint committees made a careful study of the entire subject and at a meeting of the Board on October 12, 1948, presented its findings. In brief, the committee reported that Mrs. Hastings had agreed to allow the Society to build upon her property under certain terms and conditions. The committee recommended that the offer be accepted and that the Society im mediately proceed with building plans. The Board adopted the recommenda tions of the joint committees.

The Building Committee continued to function for a considerable period of time after the adoption of the recommendations of the joint committees.

Mr. Elmer H. Whittaker furnished the Society with general plans for the development of the Trussell-Winchester property. The plans included the erection of a number of small buildings of adobe around a central court.

The general plan was approved by the Board of Directors. Notwithstanding all of these plans, no further action was ever taken. The principal difficulty was the problem of raising the funds, and no satisfactory solution presented

itself.

The Trussell-Winchester adobe was destined to become the property of the Society after Mrs. Hastings’ death and the Society thus gained a piece of anproperty and a building which it could call its own, but no satisfactory swer to the need for adequate headquarters was yet found.

The Society continued to function through the years, maintaining its program of occasional exhibits, of social events, and an occasional public lecture. Meetings of the Board of Directors were generally held in the Trus sell-Winchester adobe. Annual meetings and social functions were held in the restored Hill-Carrillo adobe, the headquarters of the Santa Barbara Foundation, through the courtesy of that organization. In the year 1950, Mr. Howard Rowe, who was then Librarian of the City Library, was elected to the presidency. Shortly after his election, however, Mr. Rowe gave up his position and departed from the City of Santa Barbara. With the de parture of Mr. Rowe, the interest in the Society lagged, and it appeared for a while that a continuance of the organization might not be possible.

The Board of Directors held meetings from lime to time, but it was difficult to secure a quorum. This situation continued until late in 1952 when some members of the organization approached Mr. Francis Price in the hope that they might interest him in taking over the leadership of the organization.

This effort was successful and on the 12lh of November, 1952, at a special meeting of the Board of Directors held in the conference room of the NewsPress Building, Mr. Francis Price was elected president of the corporation.

Mr. Price came to the presidency of the Society with a remarkable back ground of knowledge of both the language and the history of first European settlers in the area. He also had a long record of service to the community.

Immediately upon taking office, with his characteristic thoroughness, he made a careful appraisal of the Society’s needs. He realized that if the Society were to develop, it must have adequate quarters as a basis for its operation. Early in his administration, he began negotiations with the Fran ciscan fathers at the Old Mission, and through them, with the officers of 9

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their province, looking towards the use of a portion of the Mission cloister as a place for the establishment of the Society’s office and museum. The negotiations were carried on over a considerable period, and finally at a special meeting of the Board of Directors of the Society, held on the 21st of July, 1953, the President was authorized to enter into definite arrange ments with the Franciscan authorities for the use of a portion of the south west wing of the Mission. On the 20th of January, 1954, the Board of Di rectors authorized the President and Secretary of the corporation to sign a license agreement with the Franciscan authorities for the occupancy of the Mission premises. It further authorized the making of required altera tions.

An appropriation was secured from the Santa Barbara Foundation to enable the Society to properly alter and equip its newly acquired quarters, and work was immediately begun under the direction of Mr. Elmer H. Whittaker. Work progressed rapidly and the Society was able to move into its quarters in the Old Mission and to have its first exhibit there on the Jlst of May, 1954.

At the annual meeting of the Society on January 12, 1948, Mr. Edwin Gledhill was elected a member of the Board of Directors. Mr. Gledhill and ercr his wife, Andriette, had been close friends of Mrs. Katharine BaDD Hastings, and they became greatly interested in the activities of the Society. Mr. Gledhill became especially interested in the Society’s material and gave many hours of his time to its classification and preservation. On the 16th of July. 1953, the Board of Directors named Mr. Gledhill as Curator. His title was subsequently changed to that of Museum Director and Mrs. Gledhill became known as Curator.

From the time of his appointment as Curator down to the present time, Mr. Gledhill has dedicated his whole life to the Society and through his efforts and those of his wife, who has worked devotedly with him, the So ciety’s collection of historic artifacts and source materials has continued to grow through the years, and the Society now has one of the finest collections of historic material in the State of California.

During the eight years of its occupancy of the Mission quarters, the Society has maintained an almost continuous historic exhibit. This exhibit has been changed from time to time and has frequently been augmented by the loan of valuable historical material by individuals in the community.

The arrangement by which the Society has occupied quarters in the Old Mission has been a most satisfactory and profitable one. The Society has grown in membership and has taken its proper place in the community and among other Historical societies. However, it has become necessary for many reasons for the Society to make plans for its own permanent home.

The Franciscan fathers in the expansion of their program, have need for the space now occupied by the Historical Society, and the Society needs much more space for the proper care of its material and for carrying out many aspects of its program. Serious thought and study have been given to this problem and at last definite plans have been formulated. A ninety-nine year lease has been signed with the County of Santa Barbara covering property at the corner of De la Guerra and Santa Barbara Streets known as Recinto Stanwood, and plans have been adopted for the erection of a building thereon.

12

HILMAR KOEFOD

It is not within the scope of this article to discuss these plans or to look into the future of the Society.

In conclusion, however, we may say that thus far in its development, the Society has passed through three distinct phases. First, the period from its organization as a voluntary society, down to the time of its incorporation under the laws of the State of California. Second, the period of its develop ment from the date of its incorporation to its occupancy of its quarters in the Old Mission, and in the third place, its rapid growth while maintaining its headquarters there.

The Santa Barbara Historical Society now begins a fourth period in its history and looks forward to further growth in all aspects of its program.

The Santa Barbara Historical Society's Future . . . What Wil l It Be?

By W. Edwin Gledhill Illustrated in this Noticias are the exterior and floor plans of the build ing which the society will at long last construct as its permanent museum and library. This is a dream of many years that will become a reality and will reveal a future of the greatest opportunities for interesting and valuable service to our community.

In 1954, Mr. Francis Price, Sr., then President of the Society, secured a ten year lease of the present rooms in the Old Mission. Since that date the Society has been steadily increasing in membership, in important ac quisitions and in the attainment of stature throughout California.

13

However, after eight years, the Society finds itself greatly in need of more space, having outgrown the beautiful rooms we now occupy at the Old Mission.

Plans have been drawn by Robert Ingle Hoyt for a very interesting and exciting new home on the corner of Santa Barbara and De la Guerra Streets, on the property that was set aside many years ago by the late supervisor, Sam Stanwood, for a museum. Besides Mr. Hoyt, the architect, we will have the advice of Mr. Elmer Whittaker, who has had many years of experience in building with adobe.

A contract for 99 years with Santa Barbara County assures the per manent location there of the Historical Society home. To be built of adobe, reinforced with steel and concrete, the building will be both fire and earth quake proof. Its storage basement will house historic material not on ex

hibition.

Although the Historical Society has been very fortunate in receiving bequests in the last year, the income from these bequests will be needed to staff and run the new museum and library.

Therefore, it is apparent that funds for the building must be raised if our dreams of a home are to be realized. The Society is planning a campaign to secure necessary funds to build and invites your interest and par ticipation in the fund raising campaign. You can be a living part of the growth of your Society and assure its future success.

Because the Santa Barbara Historical Society has been responsible for the preservation of “El Pueblo Viejo” historic area, the building will reflect this spirit of early California.

For the first time in our history as a Society, we will be able in our new quarters, to show exhibitions from the earliest Spanish in Santa Bar bara. through the Mexican and the transition era to the American period.

Walking through these galleries one will view a continuous panorama of the paintings, maps, documents, artifacts and furniture showing the cultural life of the history of the region.

We are asked many times what is a microfilm? May I explain that a microfilm is a film of 35 MM size that is used in a special camera to photo graph documents, records of any kind, even newspapers. These films when developed are projected in a microfilm viewer to any size you desire. They are inexpensive, easy to store and used by all libraries in the reproduction of records. In the future, our library plans to have microfilmed historic material of value to Santa Barbara Historical Society at the State Library and archives, and other libraries in California.

The history of Mexican California is not completely known, the result of scattering of documents and manuscripts in collections of different li braries and individuals, which are in most part untranslated and unrecorded. in We are interested in assembling here the records of the Mexican period California, the Presidio and history of Santa Barbara.

Mr. John Galvin of the Society’s Library Committee, will direct the assembling and coordination of this material which qualified scholars will translate, study, and fill in the blank pages of the history of this period.

The result of these future years of research will later be published. This will be an important contribution to history.

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THE GLEDHILLS

In our new library the Society will have the complete records in micofilm of 4500 pages of the Spanish-Mexican land grants with the index of the California District Courts’ decisions in 1850-1860, approving or reject ing the grants.

Available in the future will be the genealogical records of many Span ish and American California families, also the Santa Barbara County census records from 1782 to 1880, and as the County of Santa Barbara microfilms its records, our Society will store the originals of the County from 1850 to 1900.

In the new library our most valuable documents, manuscripts includ ing the papers of Comandante Jose de la Guerra and Phiiipe de Goycoechea of the Presidio of Santa Barbara, Jose Maria Covarrubias, Alpheous Basil Thompson, will be reproduced, translated when necessary and made avail able for research.

The development of the Santa Barbara Historical Society will be twofold. One part will be a historical society dedicated to recording the history of the County, its people and their life and cultures; another part, a learned, sophisticated society dedicated to collecting and exhibiting manuscripts, books, paintings, silver, etc. of unusual research value or a rare aesthetic

quality.

In the plans for the Society, a large exhibition room will be devoted to Western art exhibitions, and the opening exhibit to the work of Edward

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Borein, noted etcher and artist. The American period room will have among mother exhibits, one of primitive and semi-primitive portraits of great ii: terest. These paintings, complete with their genealogy, are the likenesses of the ancestors of members of the Society. In the new museum, a room will be built to house a remarkable Chinese shrine, originally in Santa Bar bara’s Chinatown on Canon Perdido Street. Of State and National signifi cance, the Spanish California room will have an outstanding exhibition of Spanish Colonial documents, letters and books loaned by Mr. John Galvin.

Your Museum Director is not concerned entirely with the distant past.

It is there and we can uncover it. The period of the recent past is the most neglected, from 1890 to 1962. The Santa Barbara Historical Society is anxlOUS that you assist us in recording and preserving in the years to come, the history of you and your family, its genealogy, autobiography, memories, tape recordings, diaries, letters, photographs and paintings of ancestors which will prevent an historic vacuum.

This is a picture of the future of the Society. We have the money to run a successful museum and library. Now we must find the funds to house it. In the years ahead the possibilities for the development of the Society are without limitations. As yet the Society’s life is just beginning to unfold. ....

Miracles have come to pass in these last years, the preservation of the Fernald House and “El Pueblo Viejo” are two. Other miracles, with your co operation, can lie ahead.

Your Museum Director envisions a very great future for the Society, of which you can become an important part.

Trussell-Winchester Adobe and Fernald House Restoration Projects

By WiLBERTA M. Finley A history of the Santa Barbara Historical Society would not be com resplete without mention of one of its important continuing projects—the toration and preservation of two nineteenth century homes which will be saved from total obliteration due to the Society’s efforts.

The older of the two is the Trussell-Winchester Adobe, at 412 West Montecito Street. In 1948, Mrs. John Russel Hastings, whose home it was, offered it to the Society on the proviso that it be preserved by them as an historic landmark. Mrs. Hastings died June 2, 1955, bequeathing the Adobe to the Society. On October 12, 1957, it became a registered Historical Land mark, No. 559.

The other home, the many-gabled Victorian mansion built at 422 Santa Barbara Street, by Judge Charles Fernald, is a more recent acquisition. When it was threatened with destruction in the Spring of 1959, W. Edwin Gledhill, Museum Director, set in motion a campaign to raise money with which to purchase this home, and have it moved to the Hastings property on the other side of town. A Fernald House Fund was established in March to winch contributions were made l)y many generous members and friends, enabling the house to be moved to its present site in August of that same year.

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Trussell-Winehestef Adobe (Photo by Korl Obcrt).

Situated close to these two buildings is a third, the Hunt-Stambach House, owned by the Assistance League. It first occupied the northeast cor ner of State and Anapamu, and was a show place of the 1880s. Erected by Col. C. C. Hunt, in 1879, it was purchased in 1891 by Dr. Henry Stambach and moved to the corner of Mora Villa and Victoria Streets, for use as his home and office. In 1955, it too was doomed to disappear, but through the efforts of the Historical Society, and the co-operation of the Assistance League, it now stands on the corner of the Hastings property, a portion of which was purchased from-Mrs. Hastings shortly before her death. Together, these three historic homes create a unique zone in which is preserved a small part of Santa Barbara’s heritage.

Let us go back for a little while, to the Santa Barbara of 1850—the year in which, after much travail, California achieved Statehood. Although Santa Barbara had become an incorporated American city on April 9 of that year, very few outward changes had been effected. It was still, in man ners, customs and population, a predominantly Spanish community, content to let tomorrow take care of itself. Communications arrived eventually, either by horse or mule-back, or by an infrequent boat which tarried only long enough to take on or discharge cargoes, most of which were destined for the use of the Franciscan brothers in the Mission up on the distant slope.

The town itself was not large, perhaps not more than a thousand resi dents altogether, and the dwellings were constructed of white-washed, sun baked adobe brick. Red tile roofs on these casas retained the feeling of Old Spain, as did the vegetation—las tunas, gnarled olive trees, thick groves of live oaks—and everywhere grew luxuriant vines of the yellow rose of Castile.

Meandering dusty paths trailed between the houses, to end in distant fields filled with wild oats, brodeaias and golden poppies.

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Predominant among the residents of these years were families with the names of Ortega, De la Guerra, Ayala, Carrillo, Cota, Ruiz, Arrellancs, Pa checo, Garcia, Guttierez, Castro, Covarrubias, Orena, Lopez, and many others, their names bespeaking their Spanish blood. Some few hardy New Englanders however, had seen Santa Barbara while enroute to the Sandwich Isles, and finding her beautiful, had come back to take Spanish brides and live out their days here. Many of these had already become men of substance by 1850, men such as William G. Dana. John C. Jones, Don Daniel Hill, Joseph Chapman, Alfred Robinson, Captain Alpheus B. Thompson, Lewis T. Bur ton, Captain Isaac Sparks, Captain Martin Morse Kimberly, George Nidever, Captain James Burke, Benjamin Foxen, and Don Nicolas A. Den. This then, was the pastoral Santa Barbara to which came another sea captain to retire. Captain Horatio Gales Trussell.

Captain Trussell, it is said, arrived in Santa Barbara sometime around 1850, on the first steamboat to enter Santa Barbara’s harbor. Born in Orland, Maine, in 1808, he had gone to sea at an early age. He had sailed out of Liverpool, in 1837, on the brig “Elizabeth”; in the 1840s he was in com mand of a clipper ship out of Boston. He was first officer, in 1846, on the “America”, out of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and later was chief master of the “Sea Lion” at La Havre, France. In 1853, soon after his arrival in California, Captain Trussell succeeded Salisbury Haley as master of the coastal steamer “Sea Bird”.

In 1852, Horatio Trussell married Ramona Earys Burke, at the Old Mission. Ramona was the granddaughter of George Stuart, a mutineer in 1790 of the British ship H.M.S. “Bounty”. Her grandmother, Peggy Stuart, was the daughter of a Tahitian chieftain. Ramona’s mother had been brought as a small child to Santa Barbara, where she was raised as a ward of the De la Guerra family. (Miss Maria Lorenza Trussell, now in her 90s, is the last surviving child of Horatio and Ramona Trussell. A member of the His torical Society, she is a regular attendent at their social functions.)

In 1854 Captain Trussell built a home for his bride which, at the time of its construction, had an unobstructed view of the sea and distant Channel Islands.

Incorporated into the Trussell adobe were heavy beams salvaged by Captain Martin Morse Kimberly, who had managed to save most of the cargo from the wreckage of the steamer, “Winfield Scott.” This ship went aground on Anacapa Island in 1853, while enroute to Panama from San Francisco, laden with 49ers and their gold dust. Much of the timber used in the construction of the Trussell adobe was from this source, as well as several brass thresholds which are still in use under the old doors. The shingle roof was one of the first to be introduced into Santa Barbara.

The captain was a proficient carpenter, trained to build sturdily by his New England father, so it is not to be wondered at that the cottage has withstood the test of time for over a hundred years. Although the central portion of thi? house is of adobe brick laid flat sides together, as the Cali fornios built, he made the wings at either end of wood—more typical of the houses he remembered in Maine. The result was a happy blending of Spanish and American styles, with simple, uncluttered lines—a splendid example of this transitional architecture.

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The Trussells occupied this home for 15 years, during which time seven of their ten children were born.

Captain Trussell died in Santa Barbara on May 16, 1880, at the age of 72 years. In 1869 he had sold his first home to a pioneer banker, William Herman Eddy, one of the founders of the County National Bank of Santa Barbara. He in turn sold it, in 1882, to Miss Sarah Augusta Winchester, an early-day school teacher. In 1869, she and her parents, Uriah and Sarah Blake Hayes Winchester had come to California from Brewer, Maine, to be with her brother, Dr. Robert Fulton Winchester, on his Rancho, Las Armitas, in Winchester Canyon, near Goleta. Dr. Winchester, a graduate of Bowdoin Medical College, and a surgeon in the Civil War with the Union forces, had come to San Francisco in 1868 and from there to Santa Barbara, as per sonal physician to Col. William W. Hollister.

The Adobe was eventually acquired by Dr. Winchester, and then by his sister, Mrs. Stanley Bagg (Charlotte Winchester). She made this her home, when not in Tombstone or Kingman, Arizona, with her editor-pros pector husband and their children, John Sherman Bagg II, and Katharine Bagg, both of whom were born in Santa Barbara County, the latter at Rancho Las Armitas. era Katharine BaDO Hastings inherited the Adobe from her mother, and it remained in her possession until her death. Mrs. Hastings, although edu cated in California schools, had spent many years of her life in New York City, where her husband was editor of the Herald. She was an authority in the fields of antique silver, furniture, and genealogy, and wrote extensively for such magazines as Antiques and the New York Genealogical and Bio graphical Record. She returned to Santa Barbara in 1938, at which time she made extensive improvements in the Adobe, restoring it to its original condition. Upon her return in 1942, she made it her permanent home.

A hope often expressed to Mrs. Hastings by her dear friend. Miss Flor ence Fernald, was that someday their two homes could occupy places near each other, and could be neighbors, sharing the same spirit of friendliness that existed between themselves. It was just a foolish dream, of course. But what pleasure it would give them could they know that this “foolish dream” has actually been realized.

The Fernald House, built by Judge Charles Fernald in the early 1860s for his bride, Miss Hannah Hill Hobbs, is an excellent example of the Vic torian architecture introduced to Santa Barbara in the latter part of the last century-. It contained fourteen rooms, additions being made as the Judge’s family increased. When erected, the property encompassed a square block. In spite of the ravages of time, the house remained elegant and dig nified behind its sandstone wall and thick screen of ancient trees.

The Judge had planted many rare specimens of eucalyptus, palms, mag nolias and pines in his garden. At the time of their removal in 1959, manv of these trees were at least a hundred feet tall.

Charles Fernald was born on the North Berwick, Maine farm of his parents, Oliver and Olive Hurd Fernald, May 27, 1830. As a youth, he was apprenticed for a while to a printer, and later attended Hobart s Academy in Great Falls, New Hampshire, where he studied law. On one of his fre quent visits to the court sessions in nearby Dorchester, he met Edward 19

Sherman Hoar, the son of Samuel Hoar, a prominent lawyer of Concord, Massachusetts. Young Hoar, several years older than Charles, went on to study law at Harvard, and when the gold fever swept the country, left for California. Charles decided to go some months later, arriving in San Fran cisco in June of ’49. Unsuccessful in his search for gold, he returned to San Francisco where he began to study law once more, and wrote articles for the Alta Californian and the Post. Burned out by two disastrous fires, he re mained in San Francisco only long enough to pass his bar examinations; then, disheartened, he took passage on a ship to return to Maine. Enroute down the coast, the ship made a stop at Santa Barbara, and Charles Fernald decided to visit his friend, Edward Hoar, to say goodbye. Within an hour of his arrival in town, he was olTered the position of sheriff, to fill the re cently vacated office, and accepted. He later served as district attorney, and was elected county judge for three successive terms. He became an expert in the field of Land Grants, and acted as counsel for many of the larger Mexican land holders. He was admitted to practice in the State Supreme Court, as well as in the Supreme Court of the United States. In 1881, Judge Fernald was elected Mayor of Santa Barbara. He died in 1892. His wife Hannah, whom he had married on August 7, 1862, in North Berwick, Maine, and brought to California via the hazardous Panama crossing, died in the home he had built for her. in 1929, in her ninetieth year.

Five children were born to Judge and Mrs. Fernald. They were Beatrice (who married Robert Cameroji Rogers, author of the lyric The Rosary); Edith, who died at the age of seven; Florence; Charles, Jr.; and Reginald.

Miss Florence lived in the family home until her death in September, 1958, at the age of 91—the last of her generation to go.

After her death, the house was moved to its present site. It has been completely restored, keeping as close to the original plan and decor as was possible. Most of the furniture is that which was purchased by the Judge to furnish his new home, although such items as drapes and curtains in the parlor and dining room were given, as was the lovely grand piano, in Miss Florence’s Music Room. Oriental rugs, heirloom quilts, a silver tea service, china, and a brass hearth set. are among other generous gifts to the House.

This is truly a perfect example of the pioneer American period home of the middle 1800s in Santa Barbara. In this home were entertained all of the important visitors to our community, including the Marquis and Mar chioness of Lome (the Governor General of Canada and his wife. Princess Louise, fourth daughter of Queen Victoria) when they made a tour of the Pacific Coast in January, 1883. Other guests of prominence were Admiral Dewey, who was a cousin bv marriage of Mrs. Fernald, and Bishop William Kip, first Episcopal bishop of California. His hostess, Mrs. Fernald, was one of the founders in 1869, of tlio Trinity Church in Santa Barbara.

In January of 1959. a Women’s Projects Board was formally organ ized, its purpose being to work with the Historical Society in the restoration and management of the Trussell-Winchester Adobe and the Fernald House.

This group has given many hours and expended a great deal of effort towards the restoration of the old mansion to bring it to some semblance of its former glory. The interior of the house has become a charming, gracious place. With the planting of the garden, now under way, this Victorian house, with its “gingerbread trim”, once again is taking its proper place in the community.

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SANTA BARi^ARA HISTORICAL SOCIETY OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS 19 6 2 OFFICERS President First Vice President...

Second Vice President.

.Dr. Hilmar 0. Koefod Don W. Woods Hugh J. Weldon Paul G. Sweetser

Secretary Treasurer Past President

Mrs. Henry Griffiths .Thomas J. McDermott DIRECTORS

Mrs. Charles H. Cannon Mrs. Wilson Forbes John (Calvin John D. Gill W. Edwin Gledhill

Edward S. Spaulding Mrs. Robert Ingle Hoyt Garrett Van Horne Elmer H. Whittaker

Rev. Virgil Cordano

Dr. Irving N. Wills

Mrs. Godwin Pelissero

W. Edwin Gledhill Mrs. W. Edwin Gledhill

Museum Director Curator Editor-in-Chief

Edward Selden Spaulding

1962 WOMEN’S PROJECTS BOARD—STEERING COMMHTEE Mrs. Gene M. Harris Mrs. Edward Bouton Mrs. John H. Locklin

Chairman First Vice Chairman ...Second Vice Chairman

Mrs. Charles P. Harper Mrs. Leland Crawford, Jr. Miss Mary Chrisman Mrs. Wilson Forbes Mrs. Alex Funke

.Corresponding Secretary Recording Secretary Treasurer Liaison Officer Ways and Means Hospitality Grounds Historian

Mrs. Raymond Paine Mrs. .Albert De L’Arbre Mrs. Philip Wilcox

NOTICIAS BOARD Exlward S. Spaulding Wilberta M. Finley Russell Ruiz Marshall Bond Alice Jackson

.Editor Walker Tompkins Gloria Forsyth Camilla Austin Sylvia Griffiths Robert Ingle Hoyt

HISTORICAL SOCIETY MEMBERSHIP There are five classes of membership: Benefactor, $100; Patron, $25; Contributing, $15; Sustaining, $10; Active, $5. Dues are tax deductible.

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