History of
Redondo Beach
 The
vote was 177 to 10 election day April 25, 1892 when local people
went to the polls to decide whether or not the Redondo Beach
Company's 400 acres along the Pacific Ocean would become a town.
With such overwhelming approval, it was no wonder that a mixture
of civic pride and investment dollars began fueling an economy,
which, more than 100 years later, supports a City of some 63,000
residents.
Pride and faith in Redondo Beach have been the backbone of its
stability through the years as its leaders have withstood
depressions and war, lobbied Congress for development dollars,
and lured major aerospace industry to build West Coast
headquarters near the beach.
The City's history shows that the
first inhabitants were the California coastal natives who took
advantage of the climate, the abundant harvest from the ocean
and the salt from a lake near the current border of Hermosa
Beach. Modern history dates to when Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo
discovered the sweeping Santa Monica Bay in 1542. However, the
area remained mostly undeveloped until the late 1880s. At that
time, Congress appropriated money for the harbor in San Pedro
and lumber began arriving from the Pacific Northwest.
The area's heritage is closely tied to the Dominguez family,
dating back to 1784 when Juan Jose Dominguez was given the
enormous Rancho San Pedro, which includes most of today's South
Bay. For the next 100 years, his heirs sold parcels of the land,
which still reflect family names such as Carson and Del Amo.
Even Redondo Beach's street names such as Elena, Francisca,
Gertruda and Guadalupe honored the Dominguez sisters and
daughters.
Early Redondo Beach was a seaside mecca for those who came by
rail or steamship to enjoy the resort. Standing on the bluff
where Veterans Park is today, Hotel Redondo had 225 rooms and
boasted a bathroom on every floor. Built in 1889, each room had
sunlight and the exterior was a mélange of chimneys and spires.
An orchestra played at dinner and the grand ballroom was alive
with weekly festivities. Unfortunately, Prohibition killed the
hotel's appeal and in 1926 its remains were sold for scrap.
But even without the hotel, Redondo Beach enjoyed the lure of
the water. Built in 1907 by Henry Huntington, a gigantic
Pavilion covering more than 34,000 square feet stood a mere 150
feet from the shoreline near today's Pier. Nearby was the
"Plunge," billed as the "largest indoor salt water heated pool
in the world." With the arrival of surfing pioneer George Freeth
in 1907, Redondo Beach became the center of ocean sports for
Southern California.
No outline of Redondo Beach's past would be complete without
reference to Redondo Railway's 17 miles of track to Los Angeles
or Pacific Electric's Red Cars that cost a quarter for a
50-minute commute to downtown Los Angeles. Adding color to the
City's past were the gambling ships just off shore. They were
probably nothing more than barges with roulette wheels, but they
had flamboyant advertising and claimed to be three miles beyond
the reach of California's police. In 1938, some 1,500 people
rode the water taxi nightly from Redondo Beach to the Rex, a
20-minute trip costing 25 cents.
Post World War II saw a revival in civic interest, and Redondo
Beach became much more than just a seaside resort with a past.
The Edison Company built a new facility, and construction began
on an improved breakwater that used 100,000 tons of rock to
protect the area from winter storms. In 1959, harbor bonds
totaling $9 million were approved on a vote of 7 to 1, and by
1963 the first boat slips were available in King Harbor.
Aerospace giant TRW came to town in 1967, and in 1972 Redondo
Beach's Fire Department was among the first in the nation to
have a paramedics program. The Galleria, in the northern area of
the City, is a major shopping mall for the entire South Bay,
while Riviera Village ("The Village") in the southern area of
the City — and only a block from the beach — keeps a quaint
neighborhood appeal
As Redondo Beach enters its second century of land use and
development, the City continues to explore exciting
possibilities for transforming its illustrious history into an
even better and brighter future.
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