Browse Items (249 total)

fiesta003 - Dwight Murphy and his Palominos - watermark.jpg
Palomino horses, now a main feature in the Old Spanish Days Fiesta parade, are not native to Santa Barbara, but are the result of tireless work by Fiesta's first El Presidente, Dwight Murphy (above left). Golden Palomino horses, once known as…

fiesta008 - Old Spanish Day's Palominos - watermark.jpg
The palomino horse was coined as "the living symbol of Old Spanish Days fiesta" in an August 3, 1941 News-Press article. These fair-maned horses were garbed in silver and paraded down State Street in the earliest Fiestas, and visitors still enjoy…

fiesta005 - El Paseo, Santa Barbara's Connection to its Roots - watermark.jpg
El Paseo was not only central to Fiesta, but to Santa Barbara's Spanish style as a whole. El Paseo opened in 1923 and, along with Casa de la Guerra, became the inspiration for reconstruction after the 1925 earthquake devastated the Santa Barbara…

fiesta014 - The Street of Spain Welcomes Guests to the Mercado - watermark.jpg
Bernard and Irene Hoffman, the benefactors who hired James Osborne Craig to design El Paseo, hoped that the Street of Spain plan would be just "the beginning of a wonderful evolution which will take in all of the old Spanish town." Here, Fiesta…

fiesta018 - The Early Mercado - watermark.jpg
One of many traditions that have carried on from the original Fiesta, the mercado is still a local favorite. The original mercado featured vendors selling luscious fruit and vegetables.

fiesta013 - The set-up of the Mercado - watermark.jpg
Today, tents and booths line De La Guerra Street and De La Guerra Plaza; in the 1920s and 1930s, an open air market welcomed visitors and residents alike to De La Guerra Plaza and El Paseo.

fiesta012- Ladies of the Mercado - watermark.jpg
With large gourds resting on their heads, these women travel around the mercado with flowers, vegetables, and fruit.

fiesta002 - Performers Gather in El Paseo - watermark.jpg
Gathered in El Paseo, Fiesta performers would dress in traditional Spanish attire that also evoked the current Hollywood interpretation of California history.

fiesta017 - Music and Dancing in El Paseo - watermark.jpg
El Paseo, built in the early 1920's around Casa de la Guerra, was the heart of Old Spanish Days Fiesta with a mercado, performances, and public gatherings. Here, one lovely lady performs a romantic Spanish dance surrounded by a six-piece…

fiesta009 - Fiesta Around Town, Santa Barbara Courthouse - watermark.jpg
Just as today, several downtown locations acted as hubs of Fiesta activities. From Casa de la Guerra to the Santa Barbara Courthouse, residents and visitors alike donned Spanish costumes of the finest fabrics.

fiesta007 - Casa de la Guerra, a Fiesta Foundation - watermark.jpg
At Casa de la Guerra, two costumed dancers are surrounded by musicians

fiesta006 - Mariachi at Fiesta! - watermark.jpg
A June 17, 1919 edition of the Daily News proclaimed that "Spanish colors, hospitality, and traditions will predominate at Santa Barbara's summer fiesta.” Here, one of many traveling mariachi bands fill the downtown area with joyous music and…
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