10 Forgotten Moments in Newport Beach History
By William Lobdell
Photos provided by the Newport Beach Historical Society
Here are 10 largely forgotten moments in Newport Beach history.
1. The most unusual/spectacular architecture in city history was the Tomorrowland-inspired
restaurant at Newport Dunes called the Sea Byrd. It had a drive-thru oyster bar for boaters.
2. On the site of what’s now Eastbluff Elementary School, the Navy built an airstrip called the
Palisades Naval Landing Field in 1941 during World War II. It shut down in 1951.
3. In the 1910s, the first airstrip in Newport Beach was established on what’s now Bayside Drive
adjacent to the Balboa Island bridge.
4. There was a wharf at about 40th Street in the early 1900s, built as part of West Newport Beach’s
marketing efforts.
5. In 1919, the federal government wanted to establish a submarine base in Upper Newport Bay. It
also wanted to build a seaplane base there as well.
6. Water skiing in Upper Newport Bay was a popular sport in the 1950s, 60s and early 70s before the
estuary was declared a state ecological preserve in 1975.
7. In 1909, Newport Heights was promoted not as a residential community, but as farm land with
“abundant water and fertile soil.”
8. There used to be a horse stable on Balboa Island in the 1920s.
9. In the 1930s, a gambling ship called “The Star of Hollywood” operated three-and-a-half miles off
the coast of Newport Beach in international waters. Gamblers would get there via tenders from the
Newport Pier.
10. In the early 1970s, a massive coastal freeway was planned and approved to run through Newport Beach. The plans included five-level interchanges at the intersections of Newport Boulevard and Pacific Coast Highway and MacArthur Boulevard and PCH. Residents rallied at the last minute to kill the freeway.
William Lobdell is the historian laureate for the City of Newport Beach. He is also founder of Newport Beach in the Rearview Mirror, which produces a local history podcast and 90-second videos (with over seven million views) that appear on Instagram.
Follow on IG @newport.in.the.rearview.mirror
Photos provided by the Newport Beach Historical Society
