Santa Barbara County, California, officially the County of Santa Barbara, is located in
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...
. As of the
2020 census, the population was 448,229. The
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
is
Santa Barbara,
and the largest city is
Santa Maria.
Santa Barbara County comprises the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA
Metropolitan Statistical Area
In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally incorporated as a city or tow ...
. Most of the county is part of the
California Central Coast
The Central Coast is an area of California, roughly spanning the coastal region between Point Mugu and Monterey Bay. It lies northwest of Los Angeles County and south of San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, and includes the rugged, undeveloped ...
. Mainstays of the county's economy include engineering, resource extraction (particularly petroleum extraction and diatomaceous earth mining), winemaking, agriculture, and education. The software development and tourism industries are important employers in the southern part of the county.
Southern Santa Barbara County is sometimes considered the northern cultural boundary of
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...
.
History
The Santa Barbara County area, including the Northern
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
, was first settled by Native Americans at least 13,000 years ago. Evidence for a Paleoindian presence has been found in the form of a fluted
Clovis-like point found in the 1980s along the western Santa Barbara Coast, as well as the remains of
Arlington Springs Man
The Arlington Springs man is a set of Late Pleistocene human remains discovered in 1959 on Santa Rosa Island, one of the Channel Islands located off the coast of Southern California. The Arlington Springs archeological site is protected within n ...
found on
Santa Rosa Island in the 1960s. For thousands of years, the area was home to the
Chumash Chumash may refer to:
*Chumash (Judaism), a Hebrew word for the Pentateuch, used in Judaism
*Chumash people, a Native American people of southern California
*Chumashan languages, indigenous languages of California
See also
*Chumash traditional n ...
tribe of Native Americans, complex hunter-gatherers who lived along the coast and in interior valleys leaving
rock art in many locations, including
Painted Cave.
Europeans first contacted the Chumash in AD 1542, when three Spanish ships under the command of
Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo explored the area. The
Santa Barbara Channel
The Santa Barbara Channel is a portion of the Southern California Bight and separates the mainland of California from the northern Channel Islands. It is generally south of the city of Santa Barbara, and west of the Oxnard Plain in Ventura Cou ...
received its name from Spanish explorer
Sebastián Vizcaíno
Sebastián Vizcaíno (1548–1624) was a Spanish soldier, entrepreneur, explorer, and diplomat whose varied roles took him to New Spain, the Baja California peninsula, the California coast and Asia.
Early career
Vizcaíno was born in 154 ...
when he sailed along the California coast in 1602; his ships entered the channel on December 4, the day of the feast of
Santa Barbara. Spanish ships associated with the
Manila Galleon
fil, Galyon ng Maynila
, english_name = Manila Galleon
, duration = From 1565 to 1815 (250 years)
, venue = Between Manila and Acapulco
, location = New Spain (Spanish Empire ...
trade probably made emergency stops along the coast during the next 167 years, but no permanent settlements were established.
The first land
expedition to explore California, led by
Gaspar de Portolà
Gaspar is a given and/or surname of French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish origin, cognate to Casper (given name) or Casper (surname).
It is a name of biblical origin, per Saint Gaspar, one of the wise men mentioned in the Bible.
Notable peo ...
explored the coastal area in 1769, on its way to
Monterey Bay
Monterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean located on the coast of the U.S. state of California, south of the San Francisco Bay Area and its major city at the south of the bay, San Jose. San Francisco itself is further north along the coast, by ...
. The party traveled the same route on the return to San Diego in January 1770. That same year, a second expedition to Monterey again passed through the area. The
DeAnza expeditions of 1774-76 followed Portola's trail.
![SB Mission 20150914 (21995024668)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/SB_Mission_20150914_%2821995024668%29.jpg)
The
Presidio of Santa Barbara
A presidio ( en, jail, fortification) was a fortified base established by the Spanish Empire around between 16th and 18th centuries in areas in condition of their control or influence. The presidios of Spanish Philippines in particular, were cen ...
was established in 1782 (4th of 5 in California), followed by
Mission Santa Barbara
Mission Santa Barbara ( es, link=no, Misión de Santa Bárbara) is a Spanish mission in Santa Barbara, California. Often referred to as the ‘Queen of the Missions,’ it was founded by Padre Fermín Lasuén for the Franciscan order on December ...
in 1786 – both in what is now the city of
Santa Barbara. The presidio and mission kept Vizcaino's denomination, as did the later city and county – a common practice which has preserved the names of many of the 21
California Missions
The Spanish missions in California ( es, Misiones españolas en California) comprise a
series of 21 religious outposts or missions established between 1769 and 1833 in what is now the U.S. state of California. Founded by Catholic priests of ...
. Other missions in Santa Barbara County are located in Santa Ynez and Lompoc.
European contacts had devastating effects on the Chumash people, including a series of disease epidemics that drastically reduced Chumash population. The Chumash survived, however, and thousands of Chumash descendants still live in the Santa Barbara area or surrounding counties. A tribal homeland was established in 1901, the
Santa Ynez Reservation.
Following the
Mexican secularization of the missions in the 1830s, the mission pasture lands were mostly broken up into large ''
ranchos'' and granted mainly to prominent local citizens who already lived in the area.
604 of these land grants were later confirmed by the state of California, with 36 in Santa Barbara County.
Santa Barbara County was one of the 27 original counties of California, formed in 1850 at the time of statehood. The county's territory was later divided to create
Ventura County
Ventura County () is a County (United States), county in Southern California, the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, California ...
in 1873.
Geography
![SBSouthCoast](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/SBSouthCoast.jpg)
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (27.8%) is water.
Four of the
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
–
San Miguel Island
San Miguel Island (Chumash: ''Tuqan'') is the westernmost of California's Channel Islands, located across the Santa Barbara Channel in the Pacific Ocean, within Santa Barbara County, California. San Miguel is the sixth-largest of the eight Ch ...
,
Santa Cruz Island
Santa Cruz Island ( Spanish: ''Isla Santa Cruz'', Chumash: ''Limuw'') is located off the southwestern coast of Ventura, California, United States. It is the largest island in California and largest of the eight islands in the Channel Islands ...
,
Santa Rosa Island and
Santa Barbara Island
Santa Barbara Island (Spanish: ''Isla de Santa Bárbara''; Tongva: ''Tchunashngna'') is a small island of the Channel Islands archipelago in Southern California. It is protected within Channel Islands National Park, and its marine ecosystem ...
– are in Santa Barbara County. They form the largest part of the
Channel Islands National Park
Channel Islands National Park consists of five of the eight Channel Islands off the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California. Although the islands are close to the shore of the densely populated state, they have been relatively undevelope ...
(which also includes
Anacapa Island
Anacapa Island (Chumash: ''Anyapax'', meaning "mirage, illusion") is a small volcanic island located about off the coast of Port Hueneme, California, in Ventura County. The island is composed of a series of narrow islets long, oriented ...
in
Ventura County
Ventura County () is a County (United States), county in Southern California, the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, California ...
).
Santa Barbara County has a mountainous interior abutting several coastal plains on the west and south coasts of the county. The largest concentration of population is on the southern coastal plain, referred to as the "south coast" – meaning the part of the county south of the
Santa Ynez Mountains
The Santa Ynez Mountains are a portion of the Transverse Ranges, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges of the west coast of North America. It is the westernmost range in the Transverse Ranges.
The range is a large fault block of Cenozoic age create ...
. This region includes the cities of
Santa Barbara,
Goleta, and
Carpinteria
Carpinteria (; es, Carpintería, meaning "Carpentry") is a small seaside city in southeastern Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast of California, it had a population of 13,264 at the 2020 census. Carpinteria is a po ...
, as well as the unincorporated areas of
Hope Ranch
Hope Ranch is an unincorporated coastal suburb of Santa Barbara, California, located in Santa Barbara County. It is bounded on the east by Santa Barbara, on the north and west by the unincorporated area of Noleta, and on the south by the Pacifi ...
,
Summerland,
Mission Canyon
Mission Canyon is a census-designated place and an unincorporated suburb of Santa Barbara, California, in Santa Barbara County, California, Santa Barbara County, United States. The population was 2,381 at the 2010 census, down from 2,610 at the 2 ...
,
Montecito, and
Isla Vista
Isla Vista is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Barbara County, California in the United States. As of 2020 census, the community had a population of 15,500. The majority of residents are college students at t ...
, along with stretches of unincorporated area such as
Noleta
Noleta is an unofficial name used to designate the unincorporated urban area between Goleta and Santa Barbara in California, United States. It is bounded on the east by Santa Barbara and Hope Ranch, on the west by Goleta, on the north by the S ...
. North of the Santa Ynez range in the
Santa Ynez Valley
The Santa Ynez Valley is located in Santa Barbara County, California, between the Santa Ynez Mountains to the south and the San Rafael Mountains to the north. The Santa Ynez River flows through the valley from east to west. The Santa Ynez Val ...
are the towns of
Solvang,
Buellton, and
Lompoc
Lompoc ( ; Chumash: ''Lum Poc'') is a city in Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast, Lompoc has a population of 43,834 as of July 2021.
Lompoc has been inhabited for thousands of years by the Chumash people, who called ...
; the unincorporated towns of
Santa Ynez
Santa Ynez (; Spanish for "St. Agnes") is a census-designated place (CDP) in the Santa Ynez Valley of Santa Barbara County, California.
The town of Santa Ynez is one of the communities of the Santa Ynez Valley. It features the Santa Ynez Airport ...
,
Los Olivos and
Ballard; the unincorporated areas of
Mission Hills and
Vandenberg Village
Vandenberg Village is a census-designated place (CDP) in the unincorporated area of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. The population was 6,497 at the 2010 census, up from 5,802 at the 2000 census.
It is a community situated in the ...
; and
Vandenberg Space Force Base
Vandenberg Space Force Base , previously Vandenberg Air Force Base, is a United States Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California. Established in 1941, Vandenberg Space Force Base is a space launch base, launching spacecraft from ...
, where the Santa Ynez River flows out to the sea. North of the Santa Ynez Valley are the cities of
Santa Maria and
Guadalupe, and the unincorporated towns of
Orcutt,
Los Alamos,
Casmalia,
Garey, and
Sisquoc. In the extreme northeastern portion of the county are the small cities of
New Cuyama
New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created.
New or NEW may refer to:
Music
* New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz
Albums and EPs
* ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013
* ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
,
Cuyama, and
Ventucopa. As of January 1, 2006, Santa Maria has become the largest city in Santa Barbara County.
The principal mountain ranges of the county are the
Santa Ynez Mountains
The Santa Ynez Mountains are a portion of the Transverse Ranges, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges of the west coast of North America. It is the westernmost range in the Transverse Ranges.
The range is a large fault block of Cenozoic age create ...
in the south, and the
San Rafael Mountains
The San Rafael Mountains are a mountain range in central Santa Barbara County, California, U.S., separating the drainages of the Santa Ynez River and the Santa Maria River. They are part of the Transverse Ranges system of Southern Californ ...
and
Sierra Madre Mountains in the interior and northeast. Most of the mountainous area is within the
Los Padres National Forest
Los Padres National Forest is a United States national forest in southern and central California. Administered by the United States Forest Service, Los Padres includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura to Mo ...
, and includes two wilderness areas: the
San Rafael Wilderness
The San Rafael Wilderness is a wilderness area in the mountains of north central Santa Barbara County, California, United States. It is north of the city of Santa Barbara and east of Santa Maria within the Los Padres National Forest. Formed in ...
and the
Dick Smith Wilderness
The Dick Smith Wilderness is a wilderness area in the mountains of eastern Santa Barbara County, California, United States, with a portion in Ventura County. It is completely contained within the Los Padres National Forest, and is northeast of ...
. The highest elevation in the county is 6820 feet (2079 m) at Big Pine Mountain in the San Rafaels.
North of the mountains is the arid and sparsely populated
Cuyama Valley
The Cuyama Valley (Chumash: ''Kuyam'', meaning "Clam") is a valley along the Cuyama River in central California, in northern Santa Barbara, southern San Luis Obispo, southwestern Kern, and northwestern Ventura counties. It is about two hours ...
, portions of which are in
San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo (; Spanish for " St. Louis the Bishop", ; Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, in the U.S. state of California. Located on the Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly hal ...
and
Ventura Counties. Oil production, ranching, and agriculture dominate the land use in the privately owned parts of the Cuyama Valley; the Los Padres National Forest is adjacent to the south, and regions to the north and northeast are owned by the
Bureau of Land Management and the
Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US.
Founded in 1951, The Nat ...
.
Channel Islands
The four
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
in Santa Barbara County are
Santa Barbara Island
Santa Barbara Island (Spanish: ''Isla de Santa Bárbara''; Tongva: ''Tchunashngna'') is a small island of the Channel Islands archipelago in Southern California. It is protected within Channel Islands National Park, and its marine ecosystem ...
,
San Miguel Island
San Miguel Island (Chumash: ''Tuqan'') is the westernmost of California's Channel Islands, located across the Santa Barbara Channel in the Pacific Ocean, within Santa Barbara County, California. San Miguel is the sixth-largest of the eight Ch ...
,
Santa Rosa Island, and the large
Santa Cruz Island
Santa Cruz Island ( Spanish: ''Isla Santa Cruz'', Chumash: ''Limuw'') is located off the southwestern coast of Ventura, California, United States. It is the largest island in California and largest of the eight islands in the Channel Islands ...
. All of them contain native and endemic wildlife, like the island oak and Torrey Pine. All four have the deer mouse living on them, the three latter, the island fox, and the two latter, the island spotted skunk. There used to be skunks on San Miguel Island, but due to predation from marine life, birds, and foxes, the San Miguel Island skunk has gone extinct.
Climate
Santa Barbara County has a mild
warm-summer Mediterranean climate
A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...
. Along the coast, temperatures rarely exceeds in the summer, but rarely dip below freezing in winter. In the interior, however, summertime temperatures can soar over . Above , temperatures can frequently fall below freezing during the winter months. The area experiences nearly all of its rainfall during the winter months, and rarely sees any rain at all during the summer months.
The area's dry, warm summers often lead to high wildfire danger in the fall. An example of this is the massive
Thomas Fire
The Thomas Fire was a massive wildfire that affected Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties, and one of multiple wildfires that ignited in southern California in December 2017. It burned approximately before being fully contained on January ...
, which started in Ventura County and rapidly spread into southern Santa Barbara County in December 2017. At the time, the fire was the largest wildfire ever to burn in California in terms of geographical size, but was topped only eight months later in the
Mendocino Complex Fire
The Mendocino Complex Fire was a large complex of wildfires that burned in northern California for more than three months in 2018. It consisted of two wildfires, the River Fire and Ranch Fire, which burned in Mendocino, Lake, Colusa, and G ...
in northern California. Heavy rainfall occurred the following January, causing massive mudslides and debris flows from the steep, fire-denuded hillsides. The community of Montecito was especially hard-hit. As of February 3, 2018, 21 are known dead and 2 are still missing.
Air quality
Air quality in the county, unlike much of southern California, is generally good because of the prevailing winds off of the Pacific Ocean. The county is in attainment of federal standards for
ozone
Ozone (), or trioxygen, is an inorganic molecule with the chemical formula . It is a pale blue gas with a distinctively pungent smell. It is an allotrope of oxygen that is much less stable than the diatomic allotrope , breaking down in the lo ...
and
particulate matter. In July 2020 the county was designated as attainment for the state ozone standard, but it still does not attain the state PM10 standard.
Adjacent counties
*
San Luis Obispo County
San Luis Obispo County (), officially the County of San Luis Obispo, is a county on the Central Coast of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 282,424. The county seat is San Luis Obispo.
Junípero Serra founded the Miss ...
(North).
*
Kern County
Kern County is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 909,235. Its county seat is Bakersfield.
Kern County comprises the Bakersfield, California, Metropolitan statistical area. The county sp ...
(Northeast).
*
Ventura County
Ventura County () is a County (United States), county in Southern California, the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, California ...
(Southeast).
National protected areas
![Guadalupe Dunes County Park road](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/Guadalupe_Dunes_County_Park_road.JPG)
*
Channel Islands National Park
Channel Islands National Park consists of five of the eight Channel Islands off the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California. Although the islands are close to the shore of the densely populated state, they have been relatively undevelope ...
(part)
*
Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes National Wildlife Refuge (part)
*
Los Padres National Forest
Los Padres National Forest is a United States national forest in southern and central California. Administered by the United States Forest Service, Los Padres includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura to Mo ...
(part)
*
Burton Mesa Ecological Reserve
Burton, Burtons, or Burton's may refer to:
Companies
* Burton (retailer), a clothing retailer
**Burton's, Abergavenny, a shop built for the company in 1937
**The Montague Burton Building, Dublin a shop built for the company between 1929 and ...
Demographics
2020 census
''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.''
2011
Places by population, race, and income
2010
The
2010 United States Census
The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servi ...
reported that Santa Barbara County had a population of 423,895. The ethnic makeup of Santa Barbara County was 295,124 (69.6%)
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 8,513 (2.0%)
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 5,485 (1.3%)
Native American, 20,665 (4.9%)
Asian (1.6% Filipino, 1.0% Chinese, 0.5% Japanese, 0.5% Korean, 0.3% Vietnamese, 0.4% Indian), 806 (0.2%)
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 73,860 (17.4%) from
other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 19,442 (4.6%) from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
or
Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were 181,687 persons (42.9%); 38.5% of Santa Barbara County is Mexican, 0.4% Salvadoran, 0.4% Guatemalan, and 0.3% Puerto Rican.
2000
As of the census
of 2000, there were 399,347 people, 136,622 households, and 89,487 families residing in the county. The population density was 146 people per square mile (56/km
2). There were 142,901 housing units at an average density of 52 per square mile (20/km
2). The ethnic makeup of the county was 72.7%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 2.3%
Black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...
or
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 1.2%
Native American, 4.1%
Asian, 0.2%
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 15.2% from
other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 4.3% from two or more races. 34.2% of the population were
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
or
Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race. 9.1% were of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
, 8.5% English and 6.5% Irish ancestry according to
Census 2000
The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 ce ...
. 26.6% of the population reported speaking Spanish at home.
There were 136,622 households, out of which 32.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.4% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.5% were non-families. 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.8 and the average family size was 3.33.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.9% under the age of 18, 13.3% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 20.1% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 100.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.1 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $46,677, and the median income for a family was $54,042. Males had a median income of $37,997 versus $29,593 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,059. About 8.5% of families and 14.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.3% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.
The population of the area south of the Santa Ynez Mountain crest—the portion known as "South County"—was 201,161 according to the 2000 census; thus the population is almost exactly split between north and south. Recent years have shown slow or even negative growth for regions in the south county, while areas in the north county have continued to grow at a faster rate.
Government
The County is governed by a five-member Board of Supervisors. The Board's three-vote majority has shifted over the years between the north and south. The Board now includes two members from South County, two members from North County, and one member from Mid-County.
The Board of Supervisors appoints a County Executive Officer, who serves at the pleasure of the Board, to operate the County governmental organization. The County government includes 4296 employees and a budget of $757 million. The County provides various services ranging from health services to law enforcement.
Federal and state representation
All of Santa Barbara County is located within . Prior to the 2012 redistricting in California, the county was divided into two congressional districts, which reflected the north and south divide – the hallmark of the county's politics. Lois Capps represented the coastal areas, while
Elton Gallegly, a Republican, represented the northern part of the county.
In the
California State Senate, Santa Barbara is in . In the
California State Assembly, Santa Barbara is split between , and .
Policing
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff provides court protection, jail management, and coroner service for the entire county. It provides patrol and detective services for the unincorporated areas of the county and two cities by contract. Incorporated municipalities within the county that have their own municipal police departments are Santa Maria, Lompoc, and Santa Barbara City. Carpinteria and Goleta by contract with the Sheriff.
The Santa Barbara County Probation Department provides services for those placed on probation or detained in Santa Maria Juvenile Hall or Los Prietos Boys Camp. Tanja Heitman is the current
Chief Probation Officer. The department was established in 1909 following the enactment of California's first probation laws. After 106 years in service, there are currently 241
probation officer
A probation and parole officer is an official appointed or sworn to investigate, report on, and supervise the conduct of convicted offenders on probation or those released from incarceration to community supervision such as parole. Most probati ...
s and juvenile institutions officers keeping tabs on 6,600 adults and 1,350
juveniles as of 2015. The probation department has locations in
Santa Maria,
Santa Barbara, and
Lompoc
Lompoc ( ; Chumash: ''Lum Poc'') is a city in Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast, Lompoc has a population of 43,834 as of July 2021.
Lompoc has been inhabited for thousands of years by the Chumash people, who called ...
.
Politics
For most of the 20th century, Santa Barbara County was a Republican stronghold. From 1920 to 1988, it was only carried by two Democrats:
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
and
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
. However, the county has leaned to the left in recent years. Overall, Santa Barbara is a Democratic-leaning county in
Presidential and
congressional elections. The last Republican to win a majority in the county was
George H. W. Bush in
1988
File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...
. However, there is a dramatic difference in gradient between the "conservative" northern areas and the "liberal" southern areas of the county.
Santa Barbara County has long been divided between competing political interests. North of the
Santa Ynez Mountains
The Santa Ynez Mountains are a portion of the Transverse Ranges, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges of the west coast of North America. It is the westernmost range in the Transverse Ranges.
The range is a large fault block of Cenozoic age create ...
, agricultural activities and oil development have long provided jobs. The northern portion also contains a large military base,
Vandenberg Space Force Base
Vandenberg Space Force Base , previously Vandenberg Air Force Base, is a United States Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California. Established in 1941, Vandenberg Space Force Base is a space launch base, launching spacecraft from ...
, and thus military interests are prominent. These influences have created a Republican-leaning northern half.
On the other hand, the southern portion of Santa Barbara county has had an economy based on tourism, with a significant percentage of people with white-collar jobs, formerly in aerospace but more recently in software and other high-tech pursuits. Additionally, the
University of California, Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...
contributes to a liberal populace. The southern portion of the county has a strong history of left-wing activism, with anti-war protests common in Santa Barbara. It is generally believed that the inspiration for
Earth Day was the
1969 Santa Barbara oil spill; however,
Gaylord Nelson
Gaylord Anton Nelson (June 4, 1916July 3, 2005) was an American politician and environmentalist from Wisconsin who served as a United States senator and governor. He was a member of the Democratic Party and the founder of Earth Day, which launch ...
, the
senator who proposed the idea, has never directly cited any direct cause for the establishment of the holiday.
On November 4, 2008, Santa Barbara County voted 53.5% against
Proposition 8
Proposition 8, known informally as Prop 8, was a California ballot proposition and a state constitutional amendment intended to ban same-sex marriage; it passed in the November 2008 California state elections and was later overturned in cou ...
which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages. It was the only county in Southern California to vote against it.
Proposed county splits
In 1978, some residents of the northern area initiated an effort to create a "Los Padres County" out of the northern area of the county; in a referendum, this effort was defeated by a 3-1 margin.
In 2006, northern county organizations initiated a similar secession proposal, to create a proposed "Mission County." Then-Governor
Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed a formation commission to research the viability of the proposed northern county, which reached the conclusion, stated in its final report released on March 28, 2005, that "the proposed County, upon formation in 2006, would not be economically viable at current levels of service." The proposed new Mission County would have included the cities of Santa Maria, Lompoc, Guadalupe, Buellton, and Solvang, as well as the Cuyama Valley and Santa Ynez Valley, including
Lake Cachuma
Cachuma Lake is a reservoir in the Santa Ynez Valley of central Santa Barbara County, California on the Santa Ynez River adjoining the north side of California State Route 154. The artificial lake was created by the construction of Bradbury Dam, ...
. Most of the south coast of Santa Barbara County, along with the Channel Islands, would have remained with that county, with the exception of the stretch from
Hollister Ranch
Hollister Ranch is a gated residential community amidst a working cattle ranch on the Gaviota Coast in Santa Barbara County, California. The dramatic bluffs, isolated beaches and terraced grasslands are within the last undeveloped stretch of ...
to
Point Conception
Point Conception (Chumash: ''Humqaq'') is a headland along the Gaviota Coast in southwestern Santa Barbara County, California. It is the point where the Santa Barbara Channel meets the Pacific Ocean, and as the corner between the mostly north ...
. Most of the Los Padres National Forest also would have remained with Santa Barbara County. But in June 2006, voters rejected the formation of the new county, with more than 80% voting no.
Voter registration
46.8% of Santa Barbara County voters state their political party preference is Democratic, compared to 24.9% who prefer Republicans, and 21.6% who have No Party Preference. As of 2021, each of the 8 cities have more Democrats than any other political party.
Notes
Law enforcement & crime
![Santa Barbara County Sheriff K9 Magnum](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/Santa_Barbara_County_Sheriff_K9_Magnum.jpg)
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office provides law enforcement for the
unincorporated area
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
s of the county, as well as several cities within the county. The
cities
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
that the Sheriff's Office provides police services for include
Buellton,
Carpinteria
Carpinteria (; es, Carpintería, meaning "Carpentry") is a small seaside city in southeastern Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast of California, it had a population of 13,264 at the 2020 census. Carpinteria is a po ...
,
Goleta and
Solvang. In total the 640 full-time employees of the Sheriff's Office are responsible for of the county.
Founded in 1850, the Santa Barbara Sheriff's Office is the oldest law enforcement agency in the state.
In its early days, the department battled outlaws
Salomon Pico
Salomon may refer to:
People
* Salomon (given name)
* Salomon (surname)
Companies
* Salomon Brothers
Salomon Brothers, Inc., was an American multinational bulge bracket investment bank headquartered in New York. It was one of the five la ...
and
Jack Powers. Initially having a single Sheriff, aided only by a jailer and guard in charge of the chain gang, the department now has over 600 full-time employees.
The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense.
Economy
Oil production
Petroleum is a fossil fuel that can be drawn from beneath the earth's surface. Reservoirs of petroleum was formed through the mixture of plants, algae, and sediments in shallow seas under high pressure. Petroleum is mostly recovered from oil dri ...
began in 1886 with drilling in Summerland.
[Finnegan, Michael (August 18, 2014]
"In Santa Barbara County, oil firms and environmentalists square off"
''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
'' Enormous oil fields such as the
Orcutt,
Lompoc
Lompoc ( ; Chumash: ''Lum Poc'') is a city in Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast, Lompoc has a population of 43,834 as of July 2021.
Lompoc has been inhabited for thousands of years by the Chumash people, who called ...
, Santa Maria Valley, and
Cat Canyon fields provided jobs and a steady supply of oil, gas, and asphalt since the first oil discovery in the Solomon Hills in 1901.
Protests
A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one.
Protests can be thought of as acts of coopera ...
have marked periodic resistance to the impact of oil drilling over the years. A protest in 1929 in Santa Barbara expressed the frustration of the wealthy who came here to get away from it all. The
largest spill in California waters, credited as a spark for the modern environmental movement, coated the beaches and Santa Barbara Harbor with a thick crude in 1969. In recent years, major oil companies have left the area, turning over their oil leases to small independents, and decommissioning some leases areas that were no longer profitable. Concerns about the economy were foremost when, in 2014, Measure P was placed on the county ballot. If approve by the voters the measure would ban "high-intensity petroleum operations" in the county.
[
The city of Santa Barbara and other coastal communities support a significant tourism economy. White-collar jobs, previously with an emphasis in aerospace but more recently in software and other high-tech pursuits are encouraged by proximity to the ]University of California, Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...
. Vandenberg Space Force Base
Vandenberg Space Force Base , previously Vandenberg Air Force Base, is a United States Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California. Established in 1941, Vandenberg Space Force Base is a space launch base, launching spacecraft from ...
has traditionally had a large economic impact in the northern portion of the county and continues to be the site of frequent satellite launches.
Agriculture
Agriculture is the top major producing industry as of 2016. Strawberries are the county's top crop, with $413 million in production making up more than a third of all county agricultural production. Wine grapes are number two.
County farmers began growing hemp after it was removed from a list of controlled substances along with other provisions of the Hemp Farming Act of 2018
The Hemp Farming Act of 2018 was a proposed law to remove hemp (defined as cannabis with less than 0.3% THC) from List of Schedule I drugs (US), Schedule I controlled substances and making it an ordinary agricultural commodity. Its provisions w ...
. These provisions were included in the 2018 Farm Bill
The 2018 farm bill or Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 is an enacted United States farm bill that reauthorized $867 billion for many expenditures approved in the prior farm bill (the Agricultural Act of 2014). The bill was passed by the Senat ...
which made hemp legal for agricultural uses. Cannabis and hemp plants have a similar look and smell making it hard to tell the difference.
Wine country
The first wine grapes in Santa Barbara County were planted by the missionaries associated with Mission Santa Barbara
Mission Santa Barbara ( es, link=no, Misión de Santa Bárbara) is a Spanish mission in Santa Barbara, California. Often referred to as the ‘Queen of the Missions,’ it was founded by Padre Fermín Lasuén for the Franciscan order on December ...
late in the 18th century. Since commercial viticulture rebounded in the 1960s, Santa Barbara County has become a prominent viticultural
Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...
region. The 2004 Alexander Payne film, ''Sideways
''Sideways'' is a 2004 American comedy-drama road film directed by Alexander Payne and written by Jim Taylor and Payne. A film adaptation of Rex Pickett's 2004 novel of the same name, ''Sideways'' follows two men in their forties, Miles Raymo ...
'', set in the Santa Ynez Valley, brought additional attention to the county as a wine region, especially for its Pinot noir wines.
The region, also noted for its Chardonnay wines, is gaining a reputation for Rhone varietals including Syrah and Viognier. Santa Barbara wine grapes now command among the highest prices anywhere in the state.
The areas planted with wine grapes are mixed in with the rolling hills, ancient oak trees, oil fields, cattle ranches, and natural areas in the central part of the county. The county now claims more than 115 wineries cultivating with the vast majority of the vineyards in the county's Central Coast American Viticultural Areas: Santa Maria Valley AVA
The Santa Maria Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) which straddles the boundary of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties in California's multi-county Central Coast AVA. It was established on August 5, 1981, by the Alcohol and ...
, Santa Ynez Valley AVA
The Santa Ynez Valley AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Santa Barbara County, California and was established on May 16, 1983 by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). It is part of the larger Central Coast AVA, and co ...
, Sta. Rita Hills AVA
The Sta. Rita Hills AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Santa Barbara County, California, Santa Barbara County, California. From its creation in 2001 through 2006, the wine appellation was officially named Santa Rita Hills AVA. The ...
, Happy Canyon AVA, Los Olivos District AVA and Ballard Canyon AVA
Ballard Canyon AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Santa Barbara County, California and established on October 2, 2013 by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). The designated area lies west of Ballard and Solvan ...
each with its own distinct terroir. The county continues to gain AVA recognition with Alisos Canyon AVA
Alisos Canyon is an American Viticultural Area (AVA), located in Santa Barbara County, California due east outside the small town of Los Alamos on U.S 101 and about south of Santa Maria, was established on August 25, 2020, by the Alcohol an ...
being the recent established AVA in 2020.
The Foxen Canyon Wine Trail is situated about an hour north of Santa Barbara, and several miles from Los Olivos. Numerous events are held year-round in this area by the Foxen Canyon Wine Trail Association.
The trail is home to many wineries including Andrew Murray Vineyards *
Andrew Murray Vineyards is a family-owned winery located in Los Olivos, California, Los Olivos, California. Nestled in the Santa Ynez Valley AVA of Santa Barbara County, California, Santa Barbara County, it specializes in Rhône varieties Syr ...
, Fess Parker Winery and Firestone Vineyard
Firestone Vineyard is a family-owned estate winery on the Central Coast of the U.S. state of California, founded in 1972 as Santa Barbara County's first estate winery. Firestone Vineyard is one of the wineries along the Foxen Canyon Wine Trail. ...
. One of the wineries along the trail, Cambria Estate Winery, was featured in the 3rd episode of The Bachelor, an American reality television series, Season 15, on January 17, 2011.
Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are common all long the trail while the southern part also has many Rhone style wines due to the warmer climate. In the North, Burgundy styles tend to predominate more due to the cooler maritime
Maritime may refer to:
Geography
* Maritime Alps, a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps
* Maritime Region, a region in Togo
* Maritime Southeast Asia
* The Maritimes, the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prin ...
weather.
Cannabis
The county limited retail sales to eight establishments that will be distributed so they don't become clustered in any of the unincorporated communities. In the first four months of the legalization of growing cannabis for recreational purposes in California, the county issued almost 800 permits for cultivators, the most of any county in the state. Under the legalization of recreational cannabis in California, companies must be licensed by the local agency and the state to grow, test, or sell cannabis and the county may authorize none or only some of these activities. Local governments may not prohibit adults, who are in compliance with state laws, from growing, using, or transporting marijuana for personal use.
The Carpinteria Valley has become the densest concentration of cannabis farms in the United States. The growing operations are typically small so they only total about of the county's farmland. Farmers will combine small permits for neighboring plots of land though as licenses for over 1 acre of land are not allowed until 2023. The owners of many greenhouses in the Carpinteria Valley, that were built as nurseries for flowers and other plants, have converted them to growing cannabis.
While the grow operations are outside the city limits of Carpinteria, city residents have complained about the smell of odor-intense terpene
Terpenes () are a class of natural products consisting of compounds with the formula (C5H8)n for n > 1. Comprising more than 30,000 compounds, these unsaturated hydrocarbons are produced predominantly by plants, particularly conifers. Terpenes ...
s given off by cannabis plants. The county contracts with a private industrial hygienist to ensure odor pollution is not occurring. The Sheriff's Department has a Cannabis Compliance Team that conducts background checks on cannabis growers and their employees and carries out raids on illegal operations.
A report in 2022 to the Board of Supervisors had 79 cannabis operations operating in the county.
Education
There are 20 independent school districts in Santa Barbara County, and the Santa Barbara County Education Office serves as an intermediate agency between those districts and the California Department of Education. During the 2013 school year, 67,701 students were enrolled in Santa Barbara County schools, kindergarten through grade 12.
There are also a number of private schools in the county. The Los Angeles Archdiocese
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles ( la, Archidiœcesis Angelorum in California, es, Arquidiócesis de Los Ángeles) is an ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church ( particularly the Roman Catholic or Latin Church) located in th ...
operates two Catholic high schools and several elementary schools.
Culture
In addition to 41 listings of National Register of Historic Place and 16 California Historical Landmarks
A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance.
Criteria
Historical significance is determined by meeting at least one of ...
, the county lists 50 County of Santa Barbara Landmarks.
Transportation
Major highways
*
U.S. Route 101
*
State Route 1
*
State Route 33
*
State Route 135
*
State Route 144
*
State Route 154
*
State Route 166
*
State Route 192
*
State Route 217
*
State Route 246
Public transportation
Santa Barbara County is served by Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...
trains and Greyhound
The English Greyhound, or simply the Greyhound, is a breed of dog, a sighthound which has been bred for coursing, greyhound racing and hunting. Since the rise in large-scale adoption of retired racing Greyhounds, the breed has seen a resurgenc ...
buses.
The southern portion of the county is served by the Santa Barbara Metropolitan Transit District.
In the North County, the cities of Lompoc, Santa Maria, and Buellton/Solvang have their own bus services.
Airports
* Santa Barbara Municipal Airport, is located near Goleta, west of Santa Barbara.
*Santa Maria Public Airport
Santa Maria Public Airport (Capt. G. Allan Hancock Field) is three miles (5 km) south of Santa Maria, in northern Santa Barbara County, California, United States.
History
The airport was built by the United States Army during World War ...
is located just southwest of Downtown Santa Maria.
* Lompoc Airport is located on the north side of Lompoc
Lompoc ( ; Chumash: ''Lum Poc'') is a city in Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast, Lompoc has a population of 43,834 as of July 2021.
Lompoc has been inhabited for thousands of years by the Chumash people, who called ...
.
* Santa Ynez Airport is just southeast of Santa Ynez
Santa Ynez (; Spanish for "St. Agnes") is a census-designated place (CDP) in the Santa Ynez Valley of Santa Barbara County, California.
The town of Santa Ynez is one of the communities of the Santa Ynez Valley. It features the Santa Ynez Airport ...
.
Commercial flights are available at Santa Barbara Airport
Santa Barbara Municipal Airport is west of downtown Santa Barbara, California, United States. SBA covers 948 acres (384 ha) of land and has three runways.
It is near the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the city of Goleta. The ai ...
and Santa Maria Public Airport
Santa Maria Public Airport (Capt. G. Allan Hancock Field) is three miles (5 km) south of Santa Maria, in northern Santa Barbara County, California, United States.
History
The airport was built by the United States Army during World War ...
.
Communities
Cities
* Buellton
*Carpinteria
Carpinteria (; es, Carpintería, meaning "Carpentry") is a small seaside city in southeastern Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast of California, it had a population of 13,264 at the 2020 census. Carpinteria is a po ...
* Goleta
* Guadalupe
*Lompoc
Lompoc ( ; Chumash: ''Lum Poc'') is a city in Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast, Lompoc has a population of 43,834 as of July 2021.
Lompoc has been inhabited for thousands of years by the Chumash people, who called ...
* Santa Barbara (county seat)
* Santa Maria (largest city)
* Solvang
Census-designated places
* Ballard
* Casmalia
* Cuyama
* Eastern Goleta Valley
* Garey
*Isla Vista
Isla Vista is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Barbara County, California in the United States. As of 2020 census, the community had a population of 15,500. The majority of residents are college students at t ...
* Los Alamos
* Los Olivos
*Mission Canyon
Mission Canyon is a census-designated place and an unincorporated suburb of Santa Barbara, California, in Santa Barbara County, California, Santa Barbara County, United States. The population was 2,381 at the 2010 census, down from 2,610 at the 2 ...
* Mission Hills
* Montecito
*New Cuyama
New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created.
New or NEW may refer to:
Music
* New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz
Albums and EPs
* ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013
* ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
* Orcutt
*Santa Ynez
Santa Ynez (; Spanish for "St. Agnes") is a census-designated place (CDP) in the Santa Ynez Valley of Santa Barbara County, California.
The town of Santa Ynez is one of the communities of the Santa Ynez Valley. It features the Santa Ynez Airport ...
* Sisquoc
* Summerland
* Toro Canyon
*UC Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...
*Vandenberg Space Force Base
Vandenberg Space Force Base , previously Vandenberg Air Force Base, is a United States Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California. Established in 1941, Vandenberg Space Force Base is a space launch base, launching spacecraft from ...
*Vandenberg Village
Vandenberg Village is a census-designated place (CDP) in the unincorporated area of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. The population was 6,497 at the 2010 census, up from 5,802 at the 2000 census.
It is a community situated in the ...
Unincorporated communities
* Gaviota
*Hope Ranch
Hope Ranch is an unincorporated coastal suburb of Santa Barbara, California, located in Santa Barbara County. It is bounded on the east by Santa Barbara, on the north and west by the unincorporated area of Noleta, and on the south by the Pacifi ...
* Painted Cave
* Surf
* Ventucopa
Population ranking
The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Santa Barbara County.
† ''county seat''
See also
*List of museums in the California Central Coast
The Central Coast (California), California Central Coast is an area roughly spanning the area between the Monterey Bay extending through Santa Cruz County, California, Santa Cruz County, San Benito County, California, San Benito County, Monterey C ...
*
* List of school districts in San Luis Obispo County, California
*List of school districts in Santa Barbara County, California
This is a list of school districts in California.
California school districts are of several varieties, usually a Unified district, which includes all of the Elementary and High Schools in the same geographic area; Elementary school districts, w ...
* List of schools in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles
* Santa Barbara County Courthouse
*Santa Barbara County Fire Department
The Santa Barbara County Fire Department (SBCFD) provides fire protection and emergency response services for the unincorporated areas of Santa Barbara County, California, and for multiple cities within the county. Together, these areas compose ...
* Santa Barbara County Probation Department
Notes
References
Further reading
* Charles Montville Gidney, Benjamin Brooks, and Edwin M. Sheridan, ''History of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura Counties, California.'' In Two Volumes. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1917
Volume 1
Volume 2
* Yda Addis Storke
''A Memorial and Biographical History of the Counties of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura, California...''
Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1891.
External links
*
Official Santa Barbara County Property Tax Payment website
* ttps://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/santabarbaracountycalifornia,CA/PST045216 County quick factsbr>Official Santa Barbara CITY website
Santa Barbara County Education Office
{{authority control
California counties
Counties in Southern California
1850 establishments in California
Populated places established in 1850
Majority-minority counties in California