when was the city of santa barbara founded
Santa Barbara, California
The first permanent European residents were Spanish missionaries and soldiers under Felipe de Neve , who came in 1782 to build the Presidio . They were sent both to fortify the region against expansion by other powers such as England and Russia , and to convert the natives to Christianity . Many of the Spaniards brought their families with them , and those formed the nucleus of the small town -- at first just a cluster of adobes -- that surrounded the Presidio of Santa Barbara . The Santa Barbara Mission was established on the Feast of Saint Barbara , December 4 , 1786 . It was the tenth of the California Missions to be founded by the Spanish Franciscans. ( 1 ) It was dedicated by Padre Fermín Lasuén , who succeeded Padre Junipero Serra as the second president and founder of the California Franciscan Mission Chain . The Mission fathers began the slow work of converting the native Chumash to Christianity , building a village for them on the Mission grounds . The Chumash laborers built a connection between the canyon creek and the Santa Barbara Mission water system through the use of a dam and an aqueduct . During the following decades , many of the natives died of diseases such as smallpox , against which they had no natural immunity . 
The first permanent European residents were Spanish missionaries and soldiers under Felipe de Neve , who came in 1782 to build the Presidio . They were sent both to fortify the region against expansion by other powers such as England and Russia , and to convert the natives to Christianity . Many of the Spaniards brought their families with them , and those formed the nucleus of the small town -- at first just a cluster of adobes -- that surrounded the Presidio of Santa Barbara . The Santa Barbara Mission was established on the Feast of Saint Barbara , December 4 , 1786 . It was the tenth of the California Missions to be founded by the Spanish Franciscans. ( 1 ) It was dedicated by Padre Fermín Lasuén , who succeeded Padre Junipero Serra as the second president and founder of the California Franciscan Mission Chain . The Mission fathers began the slow work of converting the native Chumash to Christianity , building a village for them on the Mission grounds . The Chumash laborers built a connection between the canyon creek and the Santa Barbara Mission water system through the use of a dam and an aqueduct . During the following decades , many of the natives died of diseases such as smallpox , against which they had no natural immunity .
The first permanent European residents were Spanish missionaries and soldiers under Felipe de Neve, who came in 1782 to build the Presidio. The Santa Barbara Mission was established on the Feast of Saint Barbara, December 4, 1786.
The first permanent European residents were Spanish missionaries and soldiers under Felipe de Neve , who came in 1782 to build the Presidio . The Santa Barbara Mission was established on the Feast of Saint Barbara , December 4 , 1786 .
The first permanent European residents were Spanish missionaries and soldiers under Felipe de Neve, who came in 1782 to build the Presidio of Santa Barbara. The Santa Barbara Mission was established on the Feast of Saint Barbara, December 4, 1786.
The first permanent European residents were Spanish missionaries and soldiers under Felipe de Neve , who came in 1782 to build the Presidio . Many of the Spaniards brought their families with them , and those formed the nucleus of the small town -- at first just a cluster of adobes -- that surrounded the Presidio of Santa Barbara . The Santa Barbara Mission was established on the Feast of Saint Barbara , December 4 , 1786 .