|
more articles like this
Maritime Museum
updated: Dec 18, 2010, 8:45 AM
By the dedicated staff
When the first foreign visitors arrived in Santa Barbara in the 1500s, they came by ship.
So if you're making your first trip here, you might want to visit the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum and learn more about Santa Barbara's strong connection to the sea.
The museum, located at Santa Barbara's Harbor, has a permanent collection of exhibits showcasing local maritime history and culture. It also hosts frequent ocean-themed speakers and events, including regular visits from spectacularly restored historic ships.
Here are five top reasons to visit:
 Lots of neat stuff that relates to the sea. Historic diving helmets, large-scale ship models, and a fascinating exhibit on the Honda Point Naval disaster are among the items you'll see on the museum's ground floor. Upstairs, commercial fishing, the local Sea Shells sailing program, surfing, boating navigation and artwork and photography are on display. There's a lot to see without having to do much reading, and you can see everything at the museum in an hour.
 Great insight into local history. If you're visiting Santa Barbara, it's a safe bet that its oceanfront locale was at least part of the draw. That was the case for just about everyone who came here, starting with the original settlers, the Chumash Indians. Their tomol canoes allowed them to make active coastal trades and travel back and forth between the beautiful Channel Islands located off our coast. The first Spanish explorer to arrive here, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, actually died here after suffering a fall while exploring San Miguel Island. A decade-by-decade display of historic milestones in local waterfront history is in the left-hand corner of the museum's first floor.
 Postcards from the past. A display of enlarged old postcards from the collection of local businessman and philanthropist Peter Jordano gives a neat glimpse into local history and will be of interest to locals as well as tourists. They date from the beginnings of Santa Barbara's days as a tourist destination in the early 20th century. The pictures of buildings that no longer exist, with lots of long-gone wide-open spaces in the backgrounds, show a very different Santa Barbara. You'll see the impressive Potter Hotel, which burned to the ground in 1921. Learn more about it in Neal Graffy's great piece. What did those early tourists enjoy doing when they visited? Neal has insight about That, too.
 It's at the harbor. Santa Barbara's harbor is a friendly local spot, home to working fishermen, pleasure sailors, recreational boaters and divers, a U.S. Coast Guard station, and much more. To fully get a sense of the harbor, take a walk on the breakwater before or after your museum visit. Watch out, if the tide is high, you might get a little wet. If you're looking for a snack while you're harbor side, most locals will send you to Brophy Brothers, where the fresh and fried fish is so popular that there is almost always a wait to sit down. The restaurant is located just one building past the Maritime Museum.
 The cool old boats out front. A historic water taxi, the museum's flagship sport fishing boat the Ranger, and the historic fishing vessel the Theresa Ann are all docked just over the railing from the museum. The Ranger, a 90-year-old vessel lovingly restored by museum volunteers, has a decorated history of us in Hawaii and on Catalina Island. It was donated to the museum in 1995 by Jack Morehart. On certain days, tours of the Ranger are available, see the museum website for details. This is also where Lil' Toot pulls up to dock at the harbor. After your trip to the museum, you could cruise over to Stearns Wharf. Or, you could wander around the harbor looking at boats all day, but the internal walkways aren't open to the public, so you'll have to observe from the sidewalks along the perimeter.
Send this picture as a postcard
# # # #
Send this picture as a postcard
# # # #
Send this picture as a postcard
# # # #
# # # #
Send this picture as a postcard
# # # #
Send this picture as a postcard
# # # #
# # # #
# # # #
# # # #
Send this picture as a postcard
# # # #
Send this picture as a postcard
# # # #
Send this picture as a postcard
# # # #
Send this picture as a postcard
# # # #
THIS LOCATION ON THE MAP
Be the first to comment on this article.
# # # #
|
