Local Treasures

"Private Gardens of Santa Barbara is an invitation into twenty-one distinctive private gardens: large estates, modest homes, and surf retreats run the gamut from sublime and naturalistic to bold and urban. What they have in common, however, is what makesthem truly great. These gardens are a response to the unique character of each site, the existing architecture, and the larger environment; and adapted to the lifestyle, personality, and practical...

"This collection of stories, essays, and poems celebrates the ... richness and diversity of Santa Barbara's people, landscape, and history, from its Native American beginnings, through the Spanish colonial period, to the present."--Cover.

"An ode to the classic Spanish-style houses of Santa Barbara. Spanish Colonial Style celebrates an extraordinary tradition in architecture whose hallmarks include whitewashed stucco and plaster walls, wood-beamed ceilings, dramatic fireplaces, and, above all, mystery and romance. Homes in this much-loved style of architecture welcome the visitor and embrace the resident, and architects James Osborne Craig and Mary McLaughlin Craig, early proponents...

Santa Barbara is a captivating, inviting community that is located in a natural, beautiful setting along California's Pacific coast. The city is located 90 miles north of Los Angeles and 100-miles south of San Luis Obispo The temperate climate and refreshing ocean breezes, very similar to the Mediterranean, have distinguished this area as, "the jewel of the American Riviera." The landscape includes mountainous terrain, preserved forests and wilderness...

"In 1851 the Town Council of Santa Barbara appointed a committee to apply names to the fifty-two new streets being created ... they gave names to our streets that portrayed the geography and botany of our town, honored the Chumash, early settlers, governors, and showed a distinct sense of humor ... Author and local historian Neal Graffy shares with us the stories behind the names."--P. [4] of cover.