March Newsletter

Its History!
The Story of the Manhattan Beach Pier

The Roundhouse will be celebrating its 30th anniversary this November. We are very proud to be a part of this great city, spreading environmental and marine awareness to everyone that visits. After 30 years, you are probably used to seeing the aquarium at the end of the pier, but have you ever thought about what used to be inside this “roundhouse”?
The Manhattan Beach Pier was built in 1901 with iron crisscross railroad ties. It was 900 feet long and a very poor construction especially compared to the flourishing Redondo Beach Pier built in 1888. In 1914, the Manhattan Beach Pier and Beach Association was formed and began construction on a grand cement fishing pier in 1916 to attract tourists. The Roundhouse building itself opened on July 4th, 1922 and offered a bait shop, tackle rental, and restaurant. A 200 foot extension was added to the end of the pier in 1928! The pier was booming with an abundance of fish, large and small, for everyone, including the seabirds. On January 9th, 1940 a huge storm came and wiped out 90 feet of the pier extension. It was never rebuilt and by 1941 the rest of the extension was washed away. In 1953, engineers declared that the pier was in need of urgent repairs. The pier and Roundhouse received small renovations throughout the many years that it was in existence.
In 1979, Judge Richard Fruin established the Oceanographic Teaching Stations and the Roundhouse Aquarium. He still serves on the board today. The Roundhouse has undergone numerous changes since it began but the largest occurred in 1991 when the pier was torn down and completely renovated. During that time, the aquarium was relocated to El Segundo. The Roundhouse Aquarium reopened its doors in July of 1992 and was modeled after the original design of 1920. In 2002, the famous 3,500 gallon shark tank was added to the Roundhouse Aquarium and numerous renovations took place to enhance the inside of the Aquarium. The Roundhouse Aquarium currently has over 75 species of marine animals all local to the Santa Monica Bay. We are opened for free so come visit any day of the week. Next time you walk on the pier, remember to bask in its history and make new memories. To find out more about the pier, check out the book:
Manhattan Beach Pier, by Jan Dennis.