Santa Catalina Island, also called Catalina Island, is a popular vacation destination in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. It lies about 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Los Angeles and is part of Los Angeles County. Santa Catalina Island is the third largest of the eight islands in California’s Channel Islands group. It is separated from the mainland by the San Pedro Channel and the Gulf of Santa Catalina. The island is 22 miles (35 kilometers) long and ranges from 1/2 mile to 8 miles (0.8 to 13 kilometers) wide. It had a population of about 4,000 at the 2020 census.
The coastline of Santa Catalina Island has both sandy beaches and rocky coves. Rugged hills and broad valleys make up much of the island’s interior. The island has cool summers and mild winters. Each year, the island’s natural beauty attracts numerous tourists for such activities as camping, diving, hiking, sea kayaking, and snorkeling. Visitors from the mainland can reach the island by boat, helicopter, or airplane.
Avalon, on Avalon Bay near the east end of the island, is Santa Catalina’s only city. It has a number of hotels, restaurants, beaches, and other attractions. The Catalina Casino, built in the Art Deco style in 1929, is the town’s most famous landmark. The building features a movie theater and a large ballroom. On the western side of Santa Catalina, the village of Two Harbors is a popular destination for pleasure boaters.
For thousands of years before European exploration, Santa Catalina Island was home to American Indians. These included the Pimungans, who were one of a number of small tribal groups in the Los Angeles area that are now known collectively as the Gabrielino or as the Tongva. In 1542, Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, a Portuguese navigator working for Spain, landed on the island and named it San Salvador. In 1602, the Spanish explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno arrived on the island on the eve of the feast day of Saint Catherine, and he renamed the island Catalina in the saint’s honor.
During the 1860’s, the discovery of silver on the island brought in a steady flow of prospectors. In 1919, the wealthy manufacturer William Wrigley bought a majority interest in the company that owned the island and began to turn it into a vacation resort. Since the early 1900’s, a number of Hollywood movies have been filmed on the island. In 1975, the Santa Catalina Island Conservancy received the donation of nearly 90 percent of the island in the interest of preserving its natural habitats.
