Did you know that the beautiful city of Santa Barbara in Southern California was named after a Catholic saint?

According to legend, Barbara lived in Asia Minor in the third century, daughter of a prominent Roman citizen. She converted to Christianity, which was illegal in the Roman Empire at the time. She had a third window added to the tower of her home to symbolize the Christian Holy Trinity while her father was away. She was then arrested, condemned to death, and her father carried out the sentence. He in turn was immediately struck dead by lightning. Barbara, martyred for her faith, became the patron saint of miners, artillerymen, and builders, among others.

In December 1602, on the eve of St. Barbara’s Feast Day, Spanish explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno sailed into the channel, whereupon the priest aboard the ship christened our land Santa Barbara.