In the late 1800s you could take a street car to Santa Cruz’s West Cliff Drive and then gamble, dance and stay in a hotel—all right there! The station was built in 1891 by the Santa Cruz, Garfield Park and Capitola Electric Railway as the end of their streetcar line. The station was built in the Victorian style and had an octagonal observatory on the second floor. The use of French for “View of the Water” was likely to give the station an exciting exotic feel.

In 1894 the same company also built a casino with a ballroom and restaurant at Woodrow and Pelton Avenues. The idea was to promote the streetcar line and further develop the area for wealthy people to vacation here. Already, West Cliff Drive near the wharves, (then just Cliff Drive) was known as Millionaire’s Row. A close by oddity and marvel of engineering was the Wave Motor. It was one of several wave and tidal energy projects undertaken in California in the 1890s (including several in San Francisco near the Cliff House and one on the Capitola Wharf in 1895). While most tried to generate electricity and failed, this one, designed only to pump water, was one of the few successes. Another attraction located near the Vue de L’eau was a museum called the Free Cliff Museum.

West Cliff Drive Development Fizzles

The plan to turn the Westside into a vacation resort area was never successful. The casino closed after about ten years, and the streetcar line became less popular. It folded in the mid-1920s as cars and buses flourished. The Vue de L’eau station burned down in 1925.

Sustained development of the Westside area of Santa Cruz did not really happen until after World War II. The tracks of the streetcar line have been gone for years, but you can enjoy looking at some old streetcar wheels and historic photographs on display at the corner of Woodrow and West Cliff Drive. Woodrow Avenue is so wide today because of the Garfield Park and Capitola Electric Railway that ran down it. Woodrow Avenue used to be called Garfield Avenue.

Arches at the Vue de L’eau

Around the turn of the century there were many more natural arches and bridges along West Cliff Drive than there are today, several of them in the area of Vue de L’eau. The arch in the two photos below was just in front of the Vue de L’eau station. It was known as Arch Rock or Crown Arch because it had a “crown” of Quaternary-aged sediments on top of it. It succumbed to erosion sometime in the 1920s.

A second, double arch was also located in the area, though the exact location is murky. You can see three rocks (sea stacks) sticking out in the water and these might be remnants of either Arch Rock or the double arch structures. Local geologist Gary Griggs has written about trying to find their exact locations in his bi-weekly newspaper column “Our Ocean Backyard.” See West Cliff is a local treasure, and Waves will eventually wear away the rocks. Local historian/naturalist Frank Perry thinks it was located a bit east of Vue de L’eau based on comparing the rock type in the photos with those of the cliffs.

Art at the Vue de L’eau

The Vue de L’eau station is long gone. But interesting structures can still be found! Just back from the corner of Woodrow and West Cliff Drive, is a sculpture named “Astronomy and Tides.” This was a gift to the City from David Kimball Anderson, a local artist who lives near here. He created the piece in 2007 for the City because he felt it was time to give back to the community.

Mr Kimball designed the piece to be representative of our winter waves. The circular shapes cut into the wave forms represent the night sky. The geometric element is recognition of work done here in Santa Cruz to more accurately predict tides and swells. The sculpture sits on a table that is California Craftsman in style but made of steel.

Further Information

Take the Self-Guided Mobile Tour

This piece is part of the West Cliff Drive Tour. Download the free app with many tours of the Santa Cruz area and beyond.