Huntington Beach Old Photos and Information for Surf City California USA

The most recent history of Huntington Beach is 100-year venture into tourism, oil & space exploration and soft industries with corporate headquarters locating to the city. Huntington Beach's rich history of photos began with the Newland House, the Red Car, a pleasure pier, ocean plunge, pavilion and attractions not strikingly different from today.  Shortly after Huntington Beach adopted its name, an oil boom began when several veins were discovered on the land near the beach. For approximately 100 years, the derricks, offshore platforms and pumps have dotted the terrain and appeared in the landscape of photographs. While the pumps surprisingly still sit next to houses, a hotel in the downtown region and are plentiful near the wetlands, many have been capped as the price of land goes up. This picture gallery includes an assortment of photos obtained through various sources and is brought to you for your enjoyment. We'd like to thank those who have contributed to the cause of helping educate and remind us of our roots in the West Coast Mecca of Huntington Beach, California, also known as Surf City.
 

  HUNTINGTON BEACH PIER OVERLOOKING OIL DERRICKS IN HUNTINGTON BEACH

PIER GALLERY

Pictured is the Huntington Beach Pier overlooking the Huntington Beach coastline in an old photo taken most like in the 1960s when color photography came into prominence. Notice the hundreds of oil derricks that dot the coastline. Beach goers and sunbathers accepted the gooey, black tar that often came up on the beach and stuck to your clothing and towels. Even you see that tar today, you know there must be a leak in a pipe or a spill somewhere. The oil derricks and drills are still part of the landscape and we hope that at least one or two are kept for historical purposes in remembrances of Huntington Beach's 100-year growth into the 21st century.

Click on the small snapshots of larger photographic images to see the big photos!

Huntington Beach
Pier
 
 Hunting Beach
Arches
 
Girl at Sign
Huntington Beach
Red Car
 
 
Franklin Roosevelt
4th of July Parade
1908 Swim Fashion

Huntington Beach

 Robin William
Golden Bear - @Perqs
Guys in Shorts

Huntington Beach

John Mayall
Golden Bear@Perqs
Kenny Rankin

Golden Bear

Fishing Huntington Beach

Huntington Beach Pier

Steve Martin

@Perqs

 
Bachman Turner
Overdrive
Perqs
../Golden Bear building and signage from the 1980s
 
Golden Bear Perqs
 
Soap Box Derby
 
Huntington Beach Pier
 
 
Main Street
Post Office
-Old
Post Office 2005
 
Realty Co. Office
 
Beach Carousel
 
Evangeline Hotel
 
Man on 3 while bike at Huntington Beach Pier
End of the Pier Cafe
John Gustafson
Huntington Surfer
 Surfing Huntington
 
 
Hoyt Axton

Golden Bear@Perqs

Main Street Biz
 
Matthew Helme and His Family pose for photo in front of Historic Helme Building

Matthew Helme(15)

Helme Building

Salt Water Plunge

Huntington Beach

 
Carnegie Library

Huntington Beach

Kenny Rankin

Golden Bear@Perqs

Linda Rondstadt

Golden Bear@Perqs

New Riders of the
Purple Sage

Golden Bear

 Band Poster

Golden Bear@Perqs

The End Cafe
Downtown Huntington Beach
 
1939 Hurricane in Huntington Beach
Huntington Beach
Riot Photo

 

 

 

 

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Those who have visited or lived in Huntington Beach for more than 10 years may remember the oil derricks along Pacific Coast Highway. Walking to the beach, surfers, tourists and locals all had to walk around them to get to the ocean. Finally, they were capped and none remain along the waterfront. Tourists often send emails asking if the oil platforms along the ocean are noticeable and create an atmosphere not pleasant for visiting. The answer is that while you will have these platforms in some of your scenic photos in which you include ocean vistas, they are situated offshore far enough that they are not strikingly noticeable. Today, you can see an occasional machine pumping oil near a house, at the wetlands or even along Edwards Hill and Golden West streets. But you will not see anything like the picture above, taken years ago.

 

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