Laguna Beach

History

Laguna Beach was the site of a prehistoric paleoindian civilization. In 1933, the first fossilized skull of a paleoindian found in California was uncovered during construction on St. Ann's Drive. Known as "Laguna Woman", the skull originally was radiocarbon dated to more than 17,000 BP, but revised measurements suggest it originated during the Holocene era, 11,700 years BP. Subsequent research has found several prehistoric encampment sites in the area. The indigenous people of the Laguna Beach area were the Tongva. Aliso Creek served as a territorial boundary between Gabrieleno and Acjachemen groups, or Juaneños, named by Spanish missionaries who first encountered them in the 1500s. The area of Laguna Canyon was named on an 1841 Mexican land grant map as (English: Glen of the Lagoons). After the Mexican–American War ended in 1848, the area of Alta California was ceded to the United States pursuant to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The treaty provided that Mexican land grants be honored and Rancho San Joaquin, which included north Laguna Beach, was granted to José Antonio Andres Sepúlveda prior to the war. Following a drought in 1864, Sepúlveda sold the property to James Irvine. The majority of Laguna Beach was one of the few parcels of coastal land in Southern California that never was included in any Mexican land grant. In 1871, the first permanent homestead in the area was occupied by the George and Sarah Thurston family of Utah on of Aliso Creek Canyon. In 1876, the brothers William and Lorenzo Nathan "Nate" Brooks purchased tracts of land in Bluebird Canyon at present-day Diamond Street. They subdivided their land, built homes and initiated the small community of Arch Beach. In his book, History of Orange County, California (1921), Samuel Armor cited the…

Geography

Laguna Beach is part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. According to the United States Census Bureau, Laguna Beach has a total area of , of which are land and are covered by water. Its coastline is long and includes 27 beaches and coves. It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean on the southwest, Crystal Cove State Park on the northwest, Laguna Woods on the northeast, Aliso Viejo and Laguna Niguel on the east, and Dana Point on the southeast. It also borders the unincorporated community of Emerald Bay, which divides the northernmost part of its coastline (Irvine Cove) from the rest of the city's coast. The land in and around Laguna Beach rises quickly from the shoreline into the hills and canyons of the San Joaquin Hills. The town's highest point, at an elevation of , is Temple Hill in the Top of the World neighborhood. Because of its hilly topography and surrounding parklands, few roads run into or out of town; only the Coast Highway connecting to Newport Beach to the northwest and to Dana Point to the south, and State Route 133 crossing the hills in a northeastern direction through Laguna Canyon. Parts of Laguna Beach border the Aliso/Wood Canyons Regional Park. The natural landscape of beaches, rocky bluffs, and craggy canyons have been noted as sources of inspiration for plein air painters and landscape photographers who have settled in the Laguna Beach since the early 1900s. The hills also are known internationally for mountain biking. Laguna Coast Wilderness Park is a wilderness area in the hills surrounding Laguna Beach. This park features coastal canyons, ridgeline views, and the only natural lakes in Orange County. Wildlife that can be found on Laguna Beach includes the Lined Shore Crab, Black Oystercatchers, Barred Sand Bass, Spiny Lobsters and the Great…

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  77,167
• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  70,819
• Black Phoebe

  Sayornis nigricans (Swainson, 1827) · Aves
  60,572
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  54,888
• Allen's Hummingbird

  Selasphorus sasin (R.Lesson, 1829) · Aves
  49,582
• Lesser Goldfinch

  Spinus psaltria (Say, 1822) · Aves
  47,131
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  46,919
• Anna's Hummingbird

  Calypte anna (R.Lesson, 1829) · Aves
  46,337

Most recent

• M 2.63 — 2026-09-23
  9 km WNW of Anza, CA
• M 2.94 — 2026-09-17
  4 km SSE of Compton, CA
• M 2.56 — 2026-09-13
  27 km SSE of Malibu, CA
• M 2.65 — 2026-09-12
  4 km E of Lennox, CA
• M 3.31 — 2026-09-12
  26 km ESE of Avalon, CA
• M 2.95 — 2026-09-12
  26 km ESE of Avalon, CA