Presidio of Santa Barbara
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Santa Barbara Presidio
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A view of the main restored portion of the Presidio in 2005, with the chapel in the center
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| Location | Santa Barbara, California |
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| Coordinates | 34°25′21.24″N 119°41′49.56″W / 34.4225667°N 119.6971000°WCoordinates: 34°25′21.24″N 119°41′49.56″W / 34.4225667°N 119.6971000°W |
| Built | April 21, 1782 |
| Architectural style | California mission |
| NRHP Reference # | 73000455 |
| CHISL # | 636 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | November 26, 1973 |
| Designated CHISL | 1958 |
El Presidio Real de Santa Bárbara, also known as the Royal Presidio of Santa Barbara, is a former military installation in Santa Barbara, California, USA. The presidio was built by Spain in 1782, with the mission of defending the Second Military District in California. In modern times, the Presidio serves as a significant tourist attraction, museum and an active archaeological site as part of El Presidio de Santa Barbara State Historic Park.
The park contains an original adobe structure called El Cuartel, which is the second oldest surviving building in California, only the chapel at Mission San Juan Capistrano, known as "Father Serra's Church", is older. The Presidio of Santa Barbara has the distinction of being the last military outpost built by Spain in the New World. The Presidio became a California Historical Landmark in 1958 and was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1973.
The current El Presidio de Santa Barbara State Historic Park site sits between Anacapa and Garden Street on East Canon Perdido Street in downtown Santa Barbara. The main portion of the site is across the street from the Santa Barbara city Post Office, and is about two blocks from city hall, De la Guerra Plaza and two other museums, the Santa Barbara Historical Museum and the Casa de la Guerra and includes a reconstructed quadrangle with soldiers' quarters and a chapel.
Only two portions of the original presidio quadrangle survive to this day: a remnant of the Cañedo Adobe, named for José María Cañedo, the Soldado de Cuera to whom it was deeded in lieu of back pay when the Presidio fell to inactivity, and the remnants of a two-room soldiers quarters, called El Cuartel. The Cañedo Adobe is currently serving as the visitor’s center for the state park, and El Cuartel is largely unmodified. The site administrator, the Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation (SBTHP), reconstructed the rest of the site, with the most recent construction—two rooms in the northwest corner of the site—finished in May 2006. The reconstruction is ongoing, with the more recent construction of two more rooms in the northwest corner.
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