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San Pedro Historic Downtown Map
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San Pedro At-A-Glance
What makes San Pedro "San Pedro"?
Located just 20 miles south of downtown Los Angeles, San Pedro is home to North America's largest port at the LA Waterfront. From the towering Battleship USS Iowa (the largest battleship on the West Coast), to the lavish and iconic art-deco Warner Grand Theater, to the serene Korean Bell, and one of California’s oldest lighthouses built in 1874, Point Fermin, San Pedro is a haven of maritime and historic gems. San Pedro is also home to the First Thursdays ArtWalk show, showcasing over 30 galleries in the heart of downtown. With over 30 global eateries, you will also find some of the best food Los Angeles has to offer. With nationally recognized historic landmarks, a thriving arts and food scene, and ocean-based adventures, San Pedro is exploding as the next must-see destination in Southern California!
What is the history of San Pedro?
Nestled at the southern end of the Palos Verdes Peninsula in the San Pedro Bay, San Pedro, was the homeland of the Tongva-Gabrieleño Native American people for thousands of years. Once called the "lords of the ocean", due to their mastery of oceangoing canoes, many Tongva villages covered the coastline. The first contact with Europeans was in 1542 when Spanish explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo sailed into what he called the Bay of Smokes, due to haze from Tonga campfires. San Pedro was originally used by Spanish ships starting in the 1540s. By 1835, San Pedro was one of the most important ports on the Pacific Coast and it was a popular port of call for the U.S. Navy ships. In the early part of this century, the Port became home to thousands of commercial tuna fishermen and cannery workers. Shipbuilding and fish canneries were the major industries through most of the 20th Century but have been replaced by containerized trade. The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach is the largest port complex in the country and are responsible for 40% of ship borne trade. Today, San Pedro is remains ethnically diverse and is home to largest Italian-American community in Southern California and large populations of Croatian and Greek families. Nearly 500 years later, San Pedro remains iconic, historic and everlasting in its seaside charm and is still the nation’s premier gateway for international commerce and the busiest seaport in the Western Hemisphere.
What is the future of San Pedro?
San Pedro boasts unprecedented opportunity for expansion with almost 5000 housing starts in various stages of development in and around San Pedro. In addition to the strong residential market, multiple commercial developments are ready to break ground in Downtown and on the LA Waterfront. From West Harbor, a world-class waterfront dining, retail and entertainment destination, to Alta Sea, an urban, ocean-based campus accelerating marine and scientific research, San Pedro is becoming a cultural, historic, and tourist harborside destination for new generations to rediscover. Focusing on emerging blue technology and innovation, North America's busiest port town is quickly becoming a science and tech-focused, visitor serving destination unmatched in Southern California.