Santa Barbara County Courthouse

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Santa Barbara County Courthouse
(U.S. National Historic Landmark)
Santa Barbara County Courthouse, exterior view from the Sunken Garden
Location:	Santa Barbara, California
Coordinates:	34°25′30″N 119°41′24″W / 34.425, -119.69Coordinates: 34°25′30″N 119°41′24″W / 34.425, -119.69
Built/Founded:	1926
Architect:	Mooser,William
Architectural style(s):	Other
Added to NRHP:	January 23, 1981
NRHP Reference#:	81000177[1]
Governing body:	Local

The Santa Barbara County Courthouse is located at 1100 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara, California. Completed in 1929, the Spanish-Moorish style building replaced the smaller Greek-Revival courthouse of the same location.^[2] The replacement was designed by William Mooser III.^[3]

Occupying an entire city block in downtown Santa Barbara, the courthouse hosts many events, particularly at the Sunken Garden, site of the 1872 courthouse.

The courthouse is composed of four buildings, totaling 150,000 square feet. The courthouse also contains a Jail Wing; however, the wing is no longer used to hold prisoners. Visitors may take elevators to reach the summit of the 85-ft "El Mirador" clock tower.^[4]

Currently, the Santa Barbara County Courthouse is undergoing several restoration projects in the various wings.^[5]

[edit] Façade

The main entrance to the courthouse features a large façade depicting two enthroned figures; between the figures is an inscription in Spanish reading:

DIOS NOS DIO LOS CAMPOS
EL ARTE HVMANA EDIFICIOS CIUDADES

which roughly translates to:

GOD GAVE US THE FIELDS
HUMAN ART [IS] CITY BUILDINGS

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• http://www.sbcourts.org/general_info/cthouse_info.htm
• http://www.santabarbaracourthouse.org/sbch/

v • d • e U.S. National Register of Historic Places Keeper of the Register · History of the National Register of Historic Places · Property types · Historic district · Contributing property List of entries National Park Service · National Historic Landmarks · National Battlefields · National Historic Sites · National Historical Parks · National Memorials · National Monuments