VAFB-1994-25: Draft Evaluation of the National Register of Historic Places Eligibility The Anza Trail Vandenberg Air Force Base Santa Barbara County, California

This document is a draft report that evaluated the National Register of Historic Places eligibility for the portion of the Anza trail on Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. The author argued that the trail is significant under criteria A and B for its association with: historic Chumash culture and the initial point of contact between the Chumash and Spanish; Spanish exploration and the establishment of the mission system in California; Gasper de Portola and his expedition of 1769 that established the presidia at Monterey and found the San Francisco Bay; Juan Bautista de Anza and his expedition of 1774 in which he discovered a land route from Mexico to the California coast; Anza and his expedition of 1776 in which he led 240 people from Tubae, Mexico to San Francisco for the establishment of the presidia and mission. The trail also appears to be eligible under criterion D for its information potential related to the Chumash.