The California Surf Museum is a museum located at 312 Pier View Way in Oceanside, California, dedicated to archiving and displaying surfboards, surf art, memorabilia, surfing equipment, photographs, magazines, videos, and more. The California Surf Museum's permanent time line of surfboards includes wooden boards from the early 1900s to today's modern boards. The museum has rotating exhibits and is visited by an estimated 20,000 people annually. It was founded in 1986 in Encinitas, California and subsequently moved to Pacific Beach before settling in Oceanside in 1991. The current location (its third location in Oceanside) is a 5100sqft building located in downtown Oceanside close to the pier. The museum hosts a number of events annually including a fundraising gala, three-day Surf Film Festival, "Legends Day", book signings, concerts and more. The California Surf Museum is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.The Museum features a display of many unique pieces of surfing memorabilia, including a display dedicated to Bethany Hamilton who lost her arm in a shark attack off the coast of Hawaii. The display includes the board that Hamilton was riding at the time with a large piece missing where the shark bit off Hamilton's arm, as well as the bathing suit she was wearing at the time, a gift from Ocean Photographer Aaron Chang.
"The California Surf Museum has been in operation for over three decades serving tens of thousands of annual visitors from over 40 nations around the globe. With a permanent collection which chronicles the history of surfboards and wave-riding, the museum also offers many revolving exhibits each year. In its current museum-quality space, it has acquired a rare set of archives and collections gathered over more than 35 years, comprising one of the world’s richest troves of surfing history.Our Museum Store is filled with many unique surfing-related items."
