(Image: Edson Smith photo collection, courtesy of Santa Barbara Public Library)
By Betsy J. Green
WAY BACK WHEN in February 1919, we were beginning to outgrow the old courthouse that was on the block bounded by Anapamu, Santa Barbara, Figueroa, and Anacapa streets. (The courthouse in 1919 stood about where the Sunken Garden is today. That will give you an idea of the small size of the former building.)
A committee was formed to judge the designs submitted by numerous architects from all over California, as well as Santa Barbara.
[Spoiler alert – although the process to design a new and improved courthouse began in 1919, the courthouse wasn’t built until after the 1925 earthquake.]
Betsy’s Way Back When book — 1918 — is now available in local bookstores and at Amazon.com. This is the fifth book in her series of the history of Santa Barbara, one year at a time. Learn more at
I don’t know what the rooms inside the courthouse looked like. Good question. I’ve never seen a photo of the interior.
About the trees – I’m not sure if those are the same ones that are there now, but something that IS still here from the old courthouse is the sandstone edging that is along the sidewalk around the courthouse. It’s cool that there’s still a piece of the past that we can touch today!