The Spanish and Mexican Roots of Santa Barbara
Long before State Street had boutiques and wine bars, Santa Barbara was shaped by centuries of Spanish and Mexican history. That story is still everywhere you look, from the red-tile roofs to the tacos.
The Spanish Arrive
The Chumash people lived along this coast for thousands of years before Europeans came. In 1602, Spanish explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno sailed into the channel on the feast day of Saint Barbara and gave the area its name. In 1782, Spain built El Presidio Real de Santa Bárbara, the last military fort it founded in Alta California, and Mission Santa Barbara followed in 1786. Today the mission is known as the Queen of the Missions.
The Mexican Era
When Mexico won independence from Spain in 1821, Santa Barbara became part of Mexico. Large ranchos spread across the region, and families like the de la Guerras made the town a center of social and political life. Their adobe home, Casa de la Guerra, still stands downtown. California became part of the United States in 1848, but the culture never left.
A Living Legacy
After the 1925 earthquake, the city rebuilt in the Spanish Colonial Revival style that defines downtown today. Every summer, Old Spanish Days Fiesta fills the streets with music, dancing, and food, a tradition dating back to 1924. And for generations, Mexican-American families on the Eastside and Westside have kept the city's food scene rooted in real flavor.
Taste the History With Taco Tour SB
The best way to experience this heritage? Eat it. On a Taco Tour SB walking tour, your guide leads you through the neighborhoods near State Street, sharing stories about the city's past while you sample some of the best tacos in Santa Barbara.
Book your Santa Barbara taco tour and taste a few hundred years of history, one bite at a time. Questions? Contact Taco Tour SB.
