Pacific Ocean Park Pier (site) (Santa Monica, California)

USA / California / Santa Monica / Santa Monica, California
 pier, amusement park, place with historical importance, interesting place, historical layer / disappeared object
This area is the former site of the Pacific Ocean Park Pier, which was a very popular pleasure pier from 1958 to its closing in 1967. It featured a pier, rides and attractions, shops, a strolling promenade, and a large ballroom.

The park, which commonly came to be known as POP, was very successful in the beginning, but many factors turned its fortunes around for the worse. Escalating crime and deterioration in the community, inefficient street constructions, fiscal mismanagement, and low park maintenence led to the park losing massive amounts of customers and in turn money by the mid '60s.

In 1967, the park ceased operations, and in 1968, it had its assets liquidated by the City of Santa Monica in order to pay creditors. The park was taken apart piece by piece, and what was left became a rundown abandoned carcass of a pier that attracted all sort of seedy and down and out characters. It was home to many homeless people and was a popular hangout for teenagers who loved the thrill of the forbbiden and dangerous. It was in these remnants of POP that the surfing and skateboard culture of Dogtown (Santa Monica/Venice/Ocean Park "ghetto") was born. The most notable regulars of the abandoned pier were the Z-Boys of 70's skateboarding fame.

In the early 70's, the pier experienced a series of arson fires that little by little consumed what was left of the ruins. In 1973, one last fire destroyed what was left. Soon after, the city decided that the ruins of POP had become an eyesore in the community and finally demolished the pier and cleared the site of any evidence there had ever been a pier there.

Today, the only parts that remain of POP are some broken pilings that are underwater and a few signs warning swimmers of their presence. It wasn't until the mid '90s that the area saw another pleasure pier of that magnitude again. This pier is the famous Santa Monica Pier, which has been extensively renovated, just a few blocks to the north of the "POP graveyard".

www.westland.net/venicehistory/mapsdocs/poppier-map.htm
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Ocean_Park
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   33°59'44"N   118°29'4"W

Comments

  • Great description.
  • There's a lovely description of the ruins, sprawled like the bones of a long-dead dinosaur, in Ray Bradbury's book, "Death is a Lonely Business."
  • The pictures here of POP remind me of my childhood visits there, from 1961 and even until 1968, after is was closed I guess. In the spring of 1961 our girl scout troop spent a warm, blue skied day there and had a wonderful time. A best friend, Melody, talked me into riding the wooden rollar coaster, and I have never been so terrified in my life. I was short and skinny at just 11 years old, so not only was the rickety, clack, clack, clack of the wheels climbing up to the summit scary, but the roaring ride back down to earth, throwing my tiny body side to side as I hung on to the bar across our laps for dear life, sure that at any moment I would be thrown out into the ocean below convince me that death was sure to follow if I hit the wooden structure or the pier below if thrown out of the rollar coaster car, so I was praying that I might hit the water first, if I did fly out, but praying even harder that God would hold Melody and me inside our car. We stayed inside. She had a wonderful time, and I had a terrifying time. She was about the same size, and loved it. She begged me to ride a second time, and I gave in, but was even more terrified the second time around. Refused to ever go on a large rollar coaster ever again for years. I Loved the rest of the rides and attractions, but swore off of full sized rollar coasters until engaged, and then married to a six foot four inch man. He likes rollar coasters, and once grown up find they are much safer with him, so for him I will ride a rollar coaster once in awhile. He helps hold me in. I will never forget the fun times at POP over the years from 1961 with my scout troop and then with my family of six kids and our parents. My last visit in 1968 my fiance and I walked around the closed attractions. Must have been before the last fire. Seems that I showed him some of the closed rides that once were so much fun and a great part of growing up. Linda L. Dreier (My married name.) (My school friends and scout friends, with whom I first visited POP knew me first as Linda Leffingwell, and then after adoption as Linda Garcia.) Hope some of them see this. Would love to hear from them again. POP was a lot of fun in the 1950s and the 1960s.
This article was last modified 12 years ago