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The Santa Cruz Surfing Museum is a
Located in the Mark Abbott Memorial Lighthouse at Lighthouse Point on West Cliff Drive, the Santa Cruz Surfing Museum opened its doors in June 1986 as the first surfing museum in the world.
The lighthouse was built in 1967 as a memorial to surfer Mark Abbott, who died while surfing at the nearby Pleasure Point surf break.
Overlooking the Steamer Lane surfing hotspot, this little museum features photographs, surfboards, and videos tracing over 100 years of surfing history in Santa Cruz.
After funding cuts in 2009, the Santa Cruz Surfing Club Preservation Society and private donations kept the museum open.
The exhibits at the museum explore over 100 years of surfing in Santa Cruz. Introduced in 1885 by three Hawaiian princes who surfed the mouth of the 
Throughout its history, surf culture has reflected and responded to popular culture. Photographs chronicle the evolution of surfing culture in Santa Cruz from idyllic summers spent at the beach in the 1930s and 1940s, through the hipster beach party 1950s, the surf rock 1960s, the "soul surfing" 1970s, the neon 1980s, and the rebirth of classic long-board riding in the 1990s.
Examples of surfboards from each era are on display, from the huge hollow paddle boards and redwood planks made and ridden in the 1930s and 1940s to examples of early foam and
The original lighthouse was one of a number of California coastal lights allocated funding by Congress in 1850, only 19 days after statehood.Perry, Frank. ''Lighthouse Point: illuminating Santa Cruz'' (2002). Santa Cruz, CA, Otter B Books Because of disputes over ownership of the land, construction did not proceed until 1868. The original light was a two-story wooden structure, with a lantern housing a fifth-order
Santa Cruz Surfing Museum Website
City of Santa Cruz website
Location of the museum and its surrounding
{{Authority control , additional=Q28374648 Museums in Santa Cruz County, California Sports museums in California Santa Cruz, California Surfing museums Surfing in California Museums established in 1986 1986 establishments in California Sports in Santa Cruz County, California
museum
A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...
which was established in May 1986 to document the history of surfing. With collections dating back to the earliest years of surfing on mainland United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, the museum houses a historical account of surfing in Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz (Spanish language, Spanish for "Holy Cross") is the largest city and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, California, Santa Cruz County, in Northern California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city population ...
.
Location
Located in the Mark Abbott Memorial Lighthouse at Lighthouse Point on West Cliff Drive, the Santa Cruz Surfing Museum opened its doors in June 1986 as the first surfing museum in the world.
The lighthouse was built in 1967 as a memorial to surfer Mark Abbott, who died while surfing at the nearby Pleasure Point surf break.
Overlooking the Steamer Lane surfing hotspot, this little museum features photographs, surfboards, and videos tracing over 100 years of surfing history in Santa Cruz.
After funding cuts in 2009, the Santa Cruz Surfing Club Preservation Society and private donations kept the museum open.
Exhibits
The exhibits at the museum explore over 100 years of surfing in Santa Cruz. Introduced in 1885 by three Hawaiian princes who surfed the mouth of the San Lorenzo River
The San Lorenzo River () is a river in the U.S. state of California. The name San Lorenzo derives from the Spanish language for "Saint Lawrence" due to its reported sighting on that saint's feast day by Spanish explorers. Its headwaters origin ...
on plank boards, surfing has permeated every facet of the Santa Cruz community.
A plaque was dedicated to the princes: David Kawānanakoa
David Laʻamea Kahalepouli Kinoiki Kawānanakoa (February 19, 1868 – June 2, 1908) was a prince of the Hawaiian Kingdom and founder of the House of Kawānanakoa. Born into Hawaiian nobility, Kawānanakoa grew up the royal court of his uncle Kin ...
, Edward Abnel Keliʻiahonui
Edward Abnel Keliʻiahonui (May 13, 1869 – September 21, 1887) was a prince of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. His name means "the chief whose strength is attained through patience".
Early life
Keliʻiahonui was born May 13, 1869, at Kaʻalaʻa at ...
, and Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole
Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole (March 26, 1871 – January 7, 1922) was a prince of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi until it was overthrown by a coalition of American and European businessmen in 1893. He later went on to become the delegate of the Territo ...
(later a delegate to US Congress) in April 2010.
Throughout its history, surf culture has reflected and responded to popular culture. Photographs chronicle the evolution of surfing culture in Santa Cruz from idyllic summers spent at the beach in the 1930s and 1940s, through the hipster beach party 1950s, the surf rock 1960s, the "soul surfing" 1970s, the neon 1980s, and the rebirth of classic long-board riding in the 1990s.
Examples of surfboards from each era are on display, from the huge hollow paddle boards and redwood planks made and ridden in the 1930s and 1940s to examples of early foam and fiberglass
Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is a common type of fibre-reinforced plastic, fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened i ...
boards, and speedy short boards used to create radical new surf moves beginning in the 1970s.
Santa Cruz Light
The museum contains the current Santa Cruz Light, marking Point Santa Cruz on the west side of Santa Cruz Anchorage.
The original lighthouse was one of a number of California coastal lights allocated funding by Congress in 1850, only 19 days after statehood.Perry, Frank. ''Lighthouse Point: illuminating Santa Cruz'' (2002). Santa Cruz, CA, Otter B Books Because of disputes over ownership of the land, construction did not proceed until 1868. The original light was a two-story wooden structure, with a lantern housing a fifth-order Fresnel lens
A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens (optics), lens which reduces the amount of material required compared to a conventional lens by dividing the lens into a set of concentric annular sections.
The simpler Dioptrics, d ...
. Erosion of Point Santa Cruz required the lighthouse to be moved back in 1879.
Around 1909 (sources vary, possibly 1913) the lens was replaced with a fourth-order Fresnel, for better visibility against the light of the city. The light was electrified in 1917, replaced by a wooden tower in 1941, and the original building demolished in 1948.
See also
*List of lighthouses in the United States
This is a list of lighthouses in the United States. The United States has had approximately a thousand lights as well as light towers, range lights, and pier head lights. Michigan has the most lights of any state with over 150 past and present ...
References
External links
Santa Cruz Surfing Museum Website
City of Santa Cruz website
Location of the museum and its surrounding
{{Authority control , additional=Q28374648 Museums in Santa Cruz County, California Sports museums in California Santa Cruz, California Surfing museums Surfing in California Museums established in 1986 1986 establishments in California Sports in Santa Cruz County, California