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The Palo Alto - Seacliff Beach, Rio Del Mar, California.

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DFW_Rider_01 on January 17, 2009

October 2008

The Palo Alto - Seacliff Beach, Rio Del Mar, California.

The Palo Alto was a concrete ship built as a tanker at the end of World War I. She was built by the San Francisco Shipbuilding Company at the U.S. Naval Shipyard in Oakland, California. She was launched on May 29, 1919, too late to see service in the war.[1] Her sister ship was the SS Peralta.

She was mothballed in Oakland until 1929, when she was bought by the Seacliff Amusement Corporation and towed to Seacliff State Beach in Aptos, California. A pier was built leading to the ship, and she was sunk a few feet in the water so her keel rested on the bottom. There she was refitted as an amusement ship, with amenities including a dance floor, swimming pool and a café.

The company went bankrupt two years later and the ship cracked at the mid section. She was stripped of her fittings and left as a fishing pier. Eventually she deteriorated to the point were she was unsafe for even this use and was closed to the public. Today she remains at Seacliff Beach and serves as an artificial reef for marine life.

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Photo details

  • Uploaded on January 17, 2009
  • © All Rights Reserved
    by DFW_Rider_01
    • Camera: Canon EOS 20D
    • Taken on 2008/10/05 19:56:47
    • Exposure: 0.001s (1/2000)
    • Focal Length: 55.00mm
    • F/Stop: f/5.600
    • ISO Speed: ISO100
    • Exposure Bias: 0.00 EV
    • No flash

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