Tag archives: the way it was
At the intersection of Stanwood Drive and Sycamore Canyon Road, a memorial fountain approaches its 100th year. Known as Jack’s Trough or Courtney Fountain, it was designed in 1925 by Lutah Maria Riggs of the George Washington Smith architectural firm for thrice-married Marguerite Doe. Known as the “Million Dollar Heiress” in her hometown of San […]
Once upon a time pepper trees reigned supreme in California, and their unique and ubiquitous presence inspired Eastern visitors to succumb to paroxysms of poetic expression. One visitor to Santa Barbara in 1874 enthused about its umbrageous and graceful foliage. Another commented on lanes of pepper trees whose wonderful feathery foliage and gorgeous scarlet berries […]
In December 1870, a traveler from Santa Barbara rented a horse and buggy and attempted to visit Colonel Bradbury True Dinsmore at his ranch in El Montecito, stopping first at the famous big grapevine. So frustrating was this experience, he was moved to write of his travails in the local paper. Although he considered the […]
Once inhabited by the native Chumash, the lands of Tajiguas Ranch on the Gaviota Coast became part of the Spanish and then Mexican land grant known as Nuestra Señora del Refugio. The Tajiguas portion was sold in 1870 to Amasa L. Lincoln and Francis C. Young, who attempted to make a living off of its […]
The Lobero Theatre Associates have a winning event every year when they present the Hats Off luncheon in the Loggia Ballroom at the Santa Barbara Biltmore. The members rummage through their closets for those little worn items, a dress hat, dust them off and then tip them to the honored keynote speaker. This year that […]
The MClub from Montecito Band & Trust held another Lunch & Learn event at the Santa Barbara Club; this time with author Hattie Beresford speaking about her new book, The Way it Was – Santa Barbara Comes of Age. Hattie has written a local history column for the Montecito Journal for the past 12 years […]
Renowned New York theater producer Winthrop Ames (1870-1937) significantly influenced the development of Santa Barbara’s community arts programs, the opening of the new Lobero Theatre, and, by extension, Old Spanish Days Fiesta. Ames was born into a prominent family in Easton, Massachusetts, whose wealth derived initially from the manufacture of shovels and expanded exponentially through […]
Montecito Journal columnist Hattie Beresford has published a new book called The Way It Was~ Santa Barbara Comes of Age. Beresford, a well-known historian and author, tells us the book chronicles the 50 years between 1880 and 1930, when she says our town threw off its Victorian cloak and donned the mantilla of a thoroughly […]
