West Beach: The Forgotten Long Beach Neighborhood that transformed into The Jungle

Did you know Long Beach once had a neighborhood known as West Beach? Join Jesse Lopez of the Grunion Gazette and Brian Chavez of the Historical Society of Long Beach as they explore the forgotten Long Beach neighborhood of West Beach and its eventual transformation into one of the city's most notorious areas known simply as The Jungle!

[@blazeinbacc]

I wish they made the jungle into something other then hotels and high rises. It would be interesting to see something new and different in Long Beach

[@jessethelopez]

I wish the city would have kept one or two of the more elegant buildings like Venetian Square. Such is life 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@LongBeachCityCAJoe]

LB should preserve as much of it's history as possible. Instead, my hometown has been transformed into a hipster transplant haven.

[@-FishLove]

I think if anything the "hipsters" enjoy more quaint and historic areas. The real enemy is corporations and capitalists who raze culture to the ground to install all of the dead space that is downtown lb today.

[@shawnamelva583]

I was stationed at the Naval Base and fell in love with Long Beach. It is major heartbreak to not see one building or one artifact from the base and also West Beach. At least I can drive up from San Diego to visit. Thanks for the history, instantly subscribed!

[@humpsandbumps3976]

Long Beach has no respect for its rich history.

[@butch3ful]

Thumbs up S uper interesting ! more like this please

[@HeyLongBeach]

Thank you for watching :)

[@melissacolver8550]

Anything but hotels and shopping. A new amusement park or updating the old pike would have been great. Wish I lived here back then.

[@Kim63146]

I agree with you. . The Pike was everything when I was growing up in the 70's. The Pike makes Long Beach. ❤️

[@Andrea-nu7jw]

Wow that was awesome history. Please please 🙏 make more

[@HeyLongBeach]

Thank you so much for watching :) More are on the way!

[@dugtlr72]

I was born in 1972 Raised just north of Edison Elementary. I remember a lot of the building in this video.

[@captlarry-3525]

Great!

[@rafaelis21]

This video for all people that loves this city are amazing. Connect us more with the real value of each place and makes us to know the real value of each piece and each site. Thanks Jesse for sharing this and hope could be more videos.

[@HeyLongBeach]

Thank you so much for watching Rafael 😊

[@deborahguidas4873]

I rember all that. When I first moved to long beach it was still there.

[@MissSarahe]

I live in one of the Hotels from the 1920s in this area

[@veramann]

The parking spaces in that area is terrible today.

[@DanStiel]

Hoping you might help... At 3:50 into watching this excellent video, I spotted an article on the front page of the September 23, 1963 issue of the Long Beach Independent newspaper titled "Coast Guard Rescues four - Boat in Ski Race Sunk by Sharks" - which described an attack of sharks on a competitor of the Catalina Ski Race. I was the volunteer media director for the Catalina Ski Race in the 1990s and never heard this story about the shark attack. So, I've been trying to track down a copy of this article, but couldn't find it anywhere. I was hoping you could give me some direction where you got the archival copy of the paper so I could share it with the Long Beach Boat & Ski Club members, which still hosts the race! Thanks in advance. Dan

[@herbert92x]

Great video. Glad to see it redeveloped. What do you have on the 'Seaside' area of Long Beach west of the river?

[@danielnunez8412]

Grew up here 4st from pine all the way to Golden

[@katrachosps]

It later bacame Old BST town cholo barrio I remember how ghetto it was.

[@khadijahbilal9325]

I wish they could have kept some of its history 😕

[@dugtlr72]

I need some help, anyone remember the Pizza place that was at LB Plaza it was on the outside on LB Blvd.

[@dxmachina777]

Sbarros

[@longbeachhippy694]

Would have been great to turn this erea into a amusement park. After the Pike was taken down. 2022, parking lots and high rise crap.

[@-FishLove]

Yeah zero soul down there

[@moiliosis5423]

Sigh, what Long Beach would’ve been w/out the war 🥲

[@thomastrout9997]

The "Jungle" may have been ugly but what occupies the space today could hardly be called beautiful. But I'm betting the tax revenue is 100 X what it used to be

[@HeyLongBeach]

You would be correct. Unfortunately, for 1970's Long Beach, this was the priority.

[@JigsawPuzzleConnection]

Wish there was no distracting annoying loud music going.

[@divinejustice536]

🌞

[@mr.ckrisz1965]

Cedar 15

[@nakfx134]

Damn Jerry a snitch

[@jeannicoleon]

Gerry was a snitch