The Santa Barbara Mission is a Spanish Franciscan mission near present-day Santa Barbara, California. It was established on December 4, the feast of Saint Barbara, in 1786, to convert the local Chumash (Canaliño) tribe to Christianity. The mission site stands on a hill between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Ynez Mountains and was consecrated by Father Fermín Lasuén, OFM, who took over the leadership of the California missions after the death of Father Junípero Serra, OFM. The Santa Barbara Mission is the only mission that has been run by Franciscans since the day of its founding.