Santa Barbara Light, Historic lighthouse in Santa Barbara, California

Santa Barbara Light is a lighthouse standing on a coastal bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean near Santa Barbara. The structure features a steel tower that serves as a navigation marker for ships traveling along the California coast.

The first Santa Barbara Light was established on December 1, 1856, built by George D. Nagle of San Francisco for $8,000, with a fourth-order Fresnel lens showing a fixed red light later changed to fixed white. On June 29, 1925, a severe earthquake at 6:45 a.m. brought the aging structure down; keeper Harley Alonzo Weeks escaped and returned to rescue his mother, sister and brother. A temporary frame tower was erected until a new lighthouse could be built.

Julia Williams managed the lighthouse for over forty years starting in 1865, maintaining the light while raising five children after her husband departed.

The lighthouse sits within a Coast Guard facility that is closed to public entry. You can view it clearly from several public vantage points along the waterfront and nearby walking paths.

The 1925 earthquake struck at 6:45 a.m. while keeper Harley Alonzo Weeks was asleep; he ran out, then went back in to rescue his mother, sister and brother. A temporary frame tower replaced the collapsed structure until a new lighthouse could be built. The present light stands on a bluff inside a fenced Coast Guard compound with housing and a playground, visible from Shoreline Drive and the La Mesa Park pedestrian bridge.