Named after the famous European explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, Cabrillo Beach in San Pedro is a recreational complex established in 1927 and located at the foot of one of the world's largest breakwaters protecting the Port of Los Angeles. A regional destination for beachgoers, the wave-swept Cabrillo attracts beachcombers to the tide pools in the adjacent rocky shores of the rugged Palos Verdes Peninsula. During spring and summer, onlookers watch the grunion mate and lay their eggs in the outer beach's wet sand. The protected beach has long been popular with young families who enjoy the calm harbor waters. A public boat launch allows easy access, and the breakwater's boulders have traditionally attracted fishermen and pelicans. Many of the million annual beach visitors enjoy exploring local marine life at the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, Los Angeles's regional clearinghouse for ocean issues, which began in 1935 as the Cabrillo Marine Museum in the Cabrillo Beach Bathhouse.
Authors Mike Schaadt, the director of the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, and Ed Mastro, the exhibits director, gathered these evocative photographs to tell this beach's colorful story from the archives of the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, San Pedro Historical Society, Port of Los Angeles, Cabrillo Beach Polar Bear Club, and Los Angeles Maritime Museum.