California beach property taken during Jim Crow era returned to Black owners

Bruce’s Beach, a beachfront property in Southern California, was returned to the descendants of its Black owners Tuesday, after it was taken by the city of Manhattan Beach during the Jim Crow era.

Bruce’s Beach returned to owners

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to return the land to the family of the owners, Charles and Willa Bruce.

About Bruce’s Beach

The resort had offered Black families a place to enjoy the California life and was a labor of love for the couple. They purchased the land in 1912 for $1,225 and built several facilities, including a cafe and changing rooms.

Their dream would become a nightmare after White neighbors and the Ku Klux Klan harassed them.

Then, the city came after them. In 1924, the city took the property through eminent domain and paid the couple a fraction of what they asked for. The city wanted the land for a park.

The property, now estimated to be worth $20 million, was transferred to Los Angeles County in 1995. The houses next to the property are around $7 million each.

In 2021, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a legislation that would enable the county to return the beachfront property to their descendants.

The new law was authored by Sen. Steve Bradford, who sits on the state’s newly formed reparations task force.

Reparations

“This is what reparations look like,” said Bradford, insisting that the county is not giving anything back to the Bruce family, yet simply returning their stolen property.

The vote laid out the terms of the return.

County officials will rent the property from the Bruces under a 24-month lease agreement totaling $413,000 per year to maintain the facility.

The decision was the result of a two-year effort by the grassroots movement, Justice for Bruce’s Beach.