Santa Monica as a town dates to 1875, when a Nevada silver senator, John P. Jones, and a ranching colonel, Robert Baker, laid it out as a seaside resort — a 'Pearl of the Pacific' they hoped would become Los Angeles's great port. Jones gave the city the long ribbon of bluff-top land that became Palisades Park, still its finest public space; the railroad arrived the same year; and the town incorporated in 1886. The port ambitions faded — San Pedro won that prize — but the resort stuck, and Santa Monica became the place Los Angeles went to the beach.
Then, in 1926, a number was painted onto the map that gave Santa Monica its most enduring identity. Route 66 — the highway that carried the country west from Chicago through eight states — was routed to end here, at the edge of the continent. The 'End of the Trail' became a destination in its own right: the place where the great American road trip finally runs out of road. For travelers who have driven the whole 2,448 miles, the Santa Monica Pier is the finish line, and that is a story Santa Monica has worn proudly ever since.
Why People Visit Santa Monica
Santa Monica rewards visitors with a rare mix — a historic amusement pier, the western end of Route 66, miles of beach, and a walkable downtown, all on a bright Pacific bay. People come for the pier and the End of the Trail, for sunsets off the bluffs of Palisades Park, and for an easy California beach day with a long history behind it. It is iconic, friendly, and unmistakably Southern California.
