Tag Archives: Beaches
A forest of oil derricks crowds the Huntington Beach coastline, Los Angeles, January 1940
After oil was discovered in Huntington Beach and Long Beach south of Los Angeles, oil wells popped up in their hundreds and pumped out oil for decades. This is a 1940 shot of Huntington Beach—not exactly the sun-dappled, picture-postcard vista … Continue reading
Oil derrick as Christmas tree, Huntington Beach, 1939
Huntington Beach is a lovely ocean-side community just south of Long Beach but back in the 1930s it was dotted with oil wells pulling from the large reserves that lay underground. It can’t have been a very pretty landscape so … Continue reading
Windward Ave at Pacific Ave, Venice, California, 1910
It always slays me to find pictures of Angelenos at Venice Beach all decked out in jackets, ties, hats, and long-sleeved dresses that reach the ground. These days it’s all cut-off jeans and bikini tops. Not that I blame anyone—heaven … Continue reading
Colorized postcard of the pier at Santa Monica, the year it opened in 1909
It took 16 months of construction, but when the Santa Monica pier opened in 1909 it was a big deal. Thousands of people swarmed onto the 1,600-foot-long concrete pier to enjoy a festive day of band concerts, swimming races and … Continue reading
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Tagged Beaches, Color photo, Santa Monica, Santa Monica pier
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Venice Pier built by Abbot Kinney showing the auditorium, the Ship Cafe, the dance pavilion
Here we have a shot of the Venice pier that Abbot Kinney (original developer of Venice) built in 1905. From left to right are the auditorium (with 300 seats), the Cabrillo Ship Café, and the dance pavilion with room for … Continue reading
Panorama photo of the Moorish-style bathhouse and Ocean Park Beach, Santa Monica, California, circa 1905
Click on the above photo to get a larger view. This panorama photo was taken (I’m guessing) from the Santa Monica pier looking south toward the stretch of Ocean Park Beach where the Moorish-style bathhouse opened in 1905. By all … Continue reading
A Thompson gravity switchback railway in front of the Arcadia Hotel, Santa Monica, 1890
Before the monstrous death-defying roller-coasters at Six Flags Magic Mountain, there was the Thompson Switchback Gravity Railroad. Mr. Thompson built first one was built at Coney Island in 1884. This one was outside the luxurious-for-the-time Arcadia Hotel in Santa Monica … Continue reading
In 1926, a stretch of Oxnard’s beach was transformed into Hollywood-by-the-Sea – fifty miles west of Tinseltown
In 1926, some bright spark—a real estate developer, I imagine—got the inspired idea to develop a deserted stretch of the beach at Oxnard and rename it something more appealing: Hollywood-by-the-Sea. These days, the drive from Hollywood to Oxnard takes about … Continue reading
The Pacific Coast Highway, possibly Santa Monica beach, California, circa 1930s
I could find no information about the date or exactly location of this photo of the Pacific Coast Highway section of Highway 1 that stretches from Santa Monica through Malibu to Oxnard. What it does look like are the palisades … Continue reading
Santa Monica Beach, California, 1887
This photo is one of the earliest shots of Los Angeles I’ve come across. This is Santa Monica beach in 1887. I’m pretty sure these dozen or so people had their entire beach to themselves, which for this modern-day Angeleno … Continue reading