Also referred to as La Patera or Old Catholic Cemetery, from 1873 until January 1897 over 1,200 people were buried here. The Catholic Church took possession on 19 November 1875 when Thomas Hope, for whom Hope Ranch is named, transferred the six-acre property to the church for a dollar. A few burials took place before the deed of transfer. Some remains interred at Cieneguitas were later re-interred at Calvary Catholic Cemetery, which opened on Hope Avenue in 1896. Because of the research of local Santa Barbara historian Neal Graffy and the late Ed Strobridge of the Order of Minor Historians of San Luis Obispo, 18 names of Union Civil War veterans and 1 veteran name of the Mexican War were found to be interred at Cieneguitas Cemetery.
Currently, there is a continuing project to replace all lost Army headstones [memory stones] to the cemetery of the First Battalion Native California Cavalry, Company C, led by Capt. Antonio Maria de alta Gracia Francisco Remigio de la Guerra of Santa Barbara, CA. This project is headed by Alex F. Grzywacki, Project Researcher on the lost graves of the men who served during the Civil War with the 1st Battalion Native California Calvary, Company C [The Santa Barbara Company], volunteer researcher with the Santa Barbara County Genealogical Society, Graves Registration Officer, Jr. Vice Commander and Terry Chaffee Memorials Officer of the SUVCW Dept. of California & Pacific, William T. Sherman Camp #28 for Santa Barbara County, California. Dorothy Oksner of the Society has been quite helpful in this venture as has the members of the SUVCW and volunteers from Civil War organizations, archaeologist Georgia Fox, historian Neal P. Graffy, the late Edson T. Strobridge, family descendants, and some public volunteers.