Casa del Herrero

Description

Casa del Herrero (House of the Blacksmith) is Montecito's only National Historic Landmark, so designated in 2009 by the US Secretary of the Interior. St. Louis industrialist George Fox Steedman, collaborated with Santa Barbara architect George Washington Smith on the estate, completed in 1925. Widely noted as one of the finest examples of Spanish Colonial Revival architecture, the house captures the flavor of an Andalusian farmhouse in its simplicity and its self-sufficiency. The 11-acre property has about 4 acres of formal gardens, bordered by symmetrical orchards to the east and west, surrounded by the remaining 7 acres planted intentionally "in the wild". "Garden rooms" extend out from each entrance to the house and give a sense of much greater sq. footage. As one of Santa Barbara's many worthy nonprofits competing for local support, Casa del Herrero stands out in terms of offering visitors and residents alike an incisive view of a bygone era, and the sense, through the stories, lives, and artifacts left us by Steedman and his progeny, of practically experiencing for ourselves what it would have been like living here in those formative years. Casa del Herrero retains a number of family members on the board of trustees - currently there are three, in addition to one family-appointed trustee. Operating expenses are generated through fundraising events, tour revenues, memberships, and grants.