The treacherous entrance to Balboa Bay had
claimed many lives before the dredging of 1935 -36.
The entrance to Balboa Bay had always been unpredictable and
dangerous to navigate. The ever shifting sandbars and the rising
and falling tides made it almost imposable to know for sure how to
In 1919 the barkentine Fremont, which was being used as a
movie boat in the
filming of the original Treasure Island, was returning from a day
of filming at sea with 45 persons aboard when it was grounded on a
sandbar at the bay entrance. The actors and crew aboard, none of whom could swim,
spent a terrifying night with only one lantern amongst them while waiting to be rescued the next morning.
Unable to free the Fremont from the sandbar, it was finally dynamited,
with cameras running. The
film was used in many movies afterwards.
The Fremont aground
in the bay entrance.
As time progressed the mouth of the entrance had been reduced to
as little as two to four feet of depth.
In 1926 George A. Rogers' son, a polio victim, was drowned
when the boat he was riding in was capsized at the bay entrance. Rogers, a wealthy retiree, set about
the funds to dredge the bay entrance. With much effort, PWA
and WPA grants and Orange County bonds were raised for a total of $1,830,000 for the project. One of the largest dredges around, the
John McMullen was used to dredge the entrance to a depth of at least ten
The dredger John McMullen
Finally in May of 1936 the dredging projected was finished, and
entrance to the bay could be navigated safely.
For more information about the dredging of Balboa Bay and other
Balboa history, visit our Balboa Library.
Bibi Anna Mesmer has tied a yellow ribbon on the flag in front of
her restaurant for her son Davian Gray, a Navy Seabee, who just
shipped out to the Persian Gulf.
Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur
built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.
Passed Away March 2, 2003
Billy was a Newport Harbor Elk and member
of NHYC, avid small boat sailor etc. His contributions to the
Elks were many. For several years he has headed the Hoop Shoot
contest for youths, read scholarships!
From Dick Vogel's
personal photo album.
In 1932 my grandfather moved his store, on Main St., to the
building next door. He worked all day the day before the grand
opening getting it ready. After he went home his friends worked
into the night finishing the job their way. They painted 3 buoys
gold and hung them over the door to resemble the gold balls that
hung in front of pawn shops in those days. Omar the Sail Maker,
who had his business upstairs, made the banner. They also added
their own lettering to the windows listing the things "we loan on"
including such items as coffins and false teeth. Some people might
have been angry but when Grandpa arrived the next morning and saw
what they had done he put on the hat and stuffed a pillow in his
shirt and played the part of the little old pawn broker all day.
The man upstairs in the first picture is Omar. The doorway my
grandfather is standing in, in the second picture, is now the Blue
Sails. When they poured a new concrete threshold, my dad, John
Jr., placed copper rivets in it to spell out Vogel's. It's still
Hi Jim, Thank you so much for the picture and article on
I used to go there with my parents in the 1950's. We would always
rent a place at the Twin Palms Apartments about four doors south
of the Pavilion. I remember my dad telling me that Victor McLagen
the actor had a place next door. Keep up the great work!
Sun Valley Idaho
Hi. My name is Natalie Ahlstrom. I just recently relocated back to
Santa Ana Heights, by the OC Airport to live with my mom. I
stumbled onto your website and found it very interesting. My great
aunt had a restaurant back in the 30's in Balboa.
Ida Brinkman's Cafe
511 E. Central
Can you give me any ideas on researching the history of this time
and place. I'm involved in my family's genealogy and she and my
grandmother as well as another aunt were reputed to have worked
Any ideas for further research that you might be aware of would be
I live in Balboa in the Newport Bay Towers and travel for work
presently in Detroit. Some times I get home sick but now that I
found your site it helps cheer me up. Please keep up the good
I've been living in Balboa for over 10 years now and had a couple
of questions. There is a very strange modern house on the ocean
front at 13th street across from the school. What's the deal with
that house? It really looks out of place. Also, have you ever
considered or do you do walking tours of Balboa? Maybe start off
with a "drink" at Dillman's get a little history of the place then
move on around the peninsula then back to another local watering
hole with some history in it to end up the tour. I don't know,
just an idea.
As a semi-long time resident, I'm always interested in learning
the history of the neighborhood. If you can, email me at my home
address which is
Thank you for the time and the great website.