Surfing in San Diego (Images of America Series) »

John C. Elwell is a former lifeguard, teacher, author, photographer, and world traveler, who started surfing as a teenager, long before foam boards, wet suits, and leashes. He has served as a consultant to surf museums and the film industry, and he was a close friend of revolutionary board designer Bob Simmons, who drowned at Windansea in 1954. A resident of Coronado, Elwell has been collecting surfing history for over 50 years. Jane Schmauss is a cofounder of the California Surf Museum and has been avidly documenting the local lore since 1986. The California Surf Museum, one of the first of its kind in the state, is located in Oceanside.

San Diego County has nearly 75 miles of picturesque coastline on the mighty Pacific Ocean, and for decades, San Diego has boasted of producing some of the world s finest surfers. But here surfing is more than a sport--it is a Southern California lifestyle--and as such has heavily influenced the beach towns throughout the county. Much research points to surfing having come to Southern California in 1907, and it may have taken hold in San Diego as early as 1910. Join with us in this wonderful pictorial journey through San Diego s little-known surfing past.