Description
This collection contains drawings of the Santa Barbara Public Library building in downtown Santa Barbara, Calif. The materials
consist of renderings, blueprints, and some original drawings and span the timeframe from the earliest proposed plans in 1916
up to additions in the late 1950s. Due to absence of original order, drawings were cataloged by architect, if known.
Background
The Santa Barbara Free Public Library was established in 1882 in downtown Santa Barbara. The original building was built at
14 E. Carrillo by Peter J. Barber. As the Library grew, the Librarian Frances Burns Linn worked with the city to receive a
grant from the Carnegie Foundation to build a new library building at the corner of Anapamu and Anacapa Streets. This building
was designed in 1916 by Pittsburgh architect Henry Hornbostel, with assistance provided by local architect Francis W. Wilson,
in the Spanish Colonial Revial style. In 1925, the Santa Barbara earthquake caused major damage to the buildling, and architect
Carleton Winslow was retained to reconstruct the damaged portions of the building. In 1930, the Faulkner Gallery art wing
was added, by architects Hunt and Chambers in the Art Deco style. Additional alterations and additions were completed through
the years to retrofit access ramps, add more office and work space, and additional seismic upgrades to the building structure
were also completed by the firm Shugart & Mendes. The building was designated a City of Santa Barbara Landmark in 2012.