100 Years of Local Surf

A new exhibit at the Hermosa Beach Historical Society Museum teemed with memories of the city's vibrant surf culture. The museum, known for its unique beach relics, showcased an original display of surfboard art on Saturday.

"We all but invented beach culture and it's nice to see," said Brendan Moir, who grew up in Hermosa Beach and now serves as theatre technician for Hermosa Beach Playhouse.

The museum launched a surfboard exhibit in September as part of its homage to lifeguards and paddleboarders. But as a new crop of boards displays through the summer, the focus is on the art.

"It's a brand new exhibit," Moir said while gazing at the colorful, hand-painted longboard "Three Dolphins," by the late airbrush artist and surfer Jack Meyers.

The surfboard art comprises a small part of the museum's 3,000-item catalogue. All photographs, postcards, artifacts and even the original 16th Street lifeguard tower, which faces the new surfboard display, were either loaned or donated to the museum.

Moir said that the lifeguard tower, which has been a part of Hermosa Beach since 1951, often draws the most attention. The museum encouraged visitors to write down treasured memories of the tower in a signature book.

"A couple [of] people were proposed to, one couple was even married on, the deck of this tower," wrote resident Shannon Carr-Davey.

Hermosa Beach native Rachel Perlot said that she remembers "summers of junior lifeguards spent running to and from" 16th Street.

Moir said that some of the surfboards in the museum were probably regulars on the same beach the 16th Street lifeguard post surveilled. 

From preserved surfboard art to a beloved lifeguard post, Moir said he is proud that locals and tourists can view the city's beach culture at the Pier Avenue museum.

"It's great that we have a resource here to come look at our history," he said.

The museum's surfboard art exhibit is free to the public. Display hours are Saturday and Sunday, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.