Bruce's Beach
Encyclopedia
Bruce's Beach was a small beach resort in the city of Manhattan Beach, California
, that was owned by and operated for African Americans. It provided the African American community with opportunities unavailable at other beach areas because of segregation
.
As a result of racial friction from disgruntled white neighbors, the property was seized using eminent domain
proceedings in the 1920s and closed down. Some of the area was eventually turned into a city park in the 1960s and renamed to bear the Bruce's Beach name in 2007.
(1856–1940), a wealthy developer and the founder of Manhattan Beach, "bucked" the practice of racial exclusion and set aside two city blocks of beachfront area and made them available for purchase by African Americans. Peck also developed "Peck's Pier," the only pier in the area open to African Americans.
Willa and Charles Bruce bought a property in the strand area that was set aside from Henry Willard for $1,225 in 1912, and added on with an additional three lots. They established a resort and named it for Mrs. Bruce.
The development included a bathhouse
and dining house for blacks, whose access to public beaches was highly restricted. That a black-only beach resort would open up there was all the more notable because Manhattan Beach was "an otherwise lily-white community" and blacks only had limited access to beaches; Mrs. Bruce's initiative "defiantly transgressed these racial boundaries." It was not the only beach attraction available to blacks, there was also Peck's Pier and pavilion, on 34th Street, a section of Santa Monica State Beach
referred to as the "Ink Well", and the Pacific Beach Club
in Orange County
. As the Los Angeles population increased and property values soared in the 1920s, blacks in the area suffered from increased racial tension, before eminent domain
proceedings started by the city forced the club to close down.
The park is on a slope overlooking the ocean and includes rolling grassy terraces with benches and small trees. It is located a few blocks from the beach, between 26th and 27th Street, and runs west from Highland Avenue to Manhattan Avenue.
Manhattan Beach, California
Manhattan Beach is the wealthiest beachfront city located in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, USA. The city is on the Pacific coast, south of El Segundo, and north of Hermosa Beach. Manhattan Beach is the home of both beach and indoor volleyball, and surfing. During the winter, the...
, that was owned by and operated for African Americans. It provided the African American community with opportunities unavailable at other beach areas because of segregation
Racial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
.
As a result of racial friction from disgruntled white neighbors, the property was seized using eminent domain
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
proceedings in the 1920s and closed down. Some of the area was eventually turned into a city park in the 1960s and renamed to bear the Bruce's Beach name in 2007.
History
George H. PeckGeorge H. Peck (1856-1940)
George H. Peck was an American real estate broker, developer and millionaire.Born George Huntington Peck, Jr., in San Francisco, California, he began his career as a railroad conductor and is credited with driving the first Southern Pacific train into San Pedro...
(1856–1940), a wealthy developer and the founder of Manhattan Beach, "bucked" the practice of racial exclusion and set aside two city blocks of beachfront area and made them available for purchase by African Americans. Peck also developed "Peck's Pier," the only pier in the area open to African Americans.
Willa and Charles Bruce bought a property in the strand area that was set aside from Henry Willard for $1,225 in 1912, and added on with an additional three lots. They established a resort and named it for Mrs. Bruce.
The development included a bathhouse
Public bathing
Public baths originated from a communal need for cleanliness. The term public may confuse some people, as some types of public baths are restricted depending on membership, gender, religious affiliation, or other reasons. As societies have changed, public baths have been replaced as private bathing...
and dining house for blacks, whose access to public beaches was highly restricted. That a black-only beach resort would open up there was all the more notable because Manhattan Beach was "an otherwise lily-white community" and blacks only had limited access to beaches; Mrs. Bruce's initiative "defiantly transgressed these racial boundaries." It was not the only beach attraction available to blacks, there was also Peck's Pier and pavilion, on 34th Street, a section of Santa Monica State Beach
Santa Monica State Beach
Santa Monica State Beach is a California State Park operated by the city of Santa Monica.-Santa Monica Beach:The beach is located along Pacific Coast Highway in Santa Monica...
referred to as the "Ink Well", and the Pacific Beach Club
Pacific Beach Club
Pacific Beach Club was a planned resort in Orange County, California for African Americans. The beachfront clubhouse, bathhouse, and pavilion were planned in 1925 and construction nearing completion the next year when the property burned down under mysterious circumstances...
in Orange County
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
. As the Los Angeles population increased and property values soared in the 1920s, blacks in the area suffered from increased racial tension, before eminent domain
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
proceedings started by the city forced the club to close down.
Bruce's Beach modern history
In the 1960s, the property, which had been vacant for decades, was made into a city park first called Bayview Terrace Park, then Parque Culiacan; in 2006, the Manhattan Beach City Council decided to rename the park, "commemorating our community's understanding that friendship, goodwill and respect for all begins within our own boundaries and extends to the world community. All are welcome." It was ceremoniously renamed in March 2007, during an event exhibiting "a deep tide of goodwill."The park is on a slope overlooking the ocean and includes rolling grassy terraces with benches and small trees. It is located a few blocks from the beach, between 26th and 27th Street, and runs west from Highland Avenue to Manhattan Avenue.
Literature
External links
- Bruce's Beach
- The History of Bruce's Beach, radio program on Weekend AmericaWeekend AmericaWeekend America was a weekly public radio program dealing with news, popular culture, the arts and more. The program was produced for American Public Media and hosted by John Moe in Saint Paul, Minnesota....