Local History

Joe shares another colorized photo of Old Mission Santa Barbara from the 1880s or before.

In 1915, a filmcrew was rained out while filiming a silent movie at Zaca Lake.

Joe shares another colorized historical photo of the Santa Barbara Mission after the 1925 earthquake

Prize fighting was illegal in many places in the U.S. back in 1919, so it was easy to find audience members for the staging of this silent film.

Drew Barrymore's grandfather was a famous silent film actor and in 1919 he got in trouble with the Santa Barbara law.

Thursday, January 19 is the 120th anniversary of the opening of the Potter Hotel, or the 121st anniversary of the groundbreaking for the hotel.

Joe shares another colorized photo of the Old Mission from the 1880s.

A reader is wondering if longtime local surfers can recall the biggest swell they remember?

Here’s a look back at another wild January storm we had in 1914 where three bridges along Mission Creek were carried out by the flood.

Joe shares another colorized photo of the Mission from 1908.

In 1919, a reporter from the movie magazine “Camera” visited the "Flying A" studio on the block surrounded by Mission, State, Padre, and Chapala streets.

Joe shares a colorized version of a pre-1880s photo of the Old Mission from the Riviera.

Misunderstandings between film folks and Santa Barbara residents started even before the “Flying A” settled here in 1912.

Neal Graffy shares Santa Barbara Christmas cards from 1904.

Joe shares another colorized photo of Old Mission Santa Barbara from 1898.

There's nothing like a mermaid movie to get people excited, one way or another.

Joe shares another colorized historical photo of Old Mission Santa Barbara.

There has been a lot of media about the removal of the old oil piers at Ellwood lately and Tom provides the detailed accounts.

It’s hard to say who was the good guy and who was the bad guy in this case – both sides were pointing fingers at each other.

Back when the “Flying A” was making movies all over our city, they often did not give any notice to the public or the authorities.

Joe shares another colorized photo of Old Mission Santa Barbara's landscaping from 1898.

Joe is back with another colorized historical photo, this one of some type of party at Old Mission Santa Barbara.

Stearns Wharf... but is it really a pier?

Thanks to our agricultural past, Goleta has lots of beautiful old farmhouses hidden away in little nooks and crannies.

When the United States entered World War I in 1917, the Army recruited horses and dogs to be sent to aid the conflict in Europe.

Joe shares another colorized photo of the Mission from the 1800s.

It's doubtful if any of the actors in the 1915 “Flying A” movie, who were purported to be Indians from a Navajo reservation, were actual Native Americans.

November 16th is the birthday of Pearl Chase, a woman who did so much to shape Santa Barbara.

Joe shares a 1900s colorized photo of Old Mission Santa Barbara.

One of the early directors for the "Flying A" – Alan Dwan – wrote that he invented the studio’s famous logo.