Two New Exhibits At Point Vicente Interpretive Center

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, CA –Two new permanent exhibits will be unveiled at the Point Vicente Interpretive Center on April 13, the City of Rancho Palos Verdes press release said. One of the new exhibits is the historic Fresnel lens of the Point Vicente Lighthouse, which has a new home on display at the center after nearly 93 years over the Palos Verdes Peninsula coast, the City of Rancho Palos Verdes press release said.

The other new exhibit is an exploration of the whaling industry at Portuguese Bend in the late 19th century and worldwide. Both new exhibits will open to the public during the annual Whale of a Day Celebration on April 13 in Rancho Palos Verdes.

“We are thrilled to open our first new exhibits in 13 years and to permanently house a treasure of such historical significance,” said Emily Rodin, Recreation Supervisor with the City of Rancho Palos Verdes. “These exhibits chronicle important chapters in local history and will inform generations.”

The Fresnel lens was made in Paris, France in 1914. It was the first lit in the tower of the Point Vicente Lighthouse on April 14, 1926, providing a "much-needed navigational aid to mariners," the press release said.

The flash could be seen from more than 20 miles away thanks to its hand-ground glass prisms and lenses, which were designed to retract and reflect light, the City said. During World War II, the light was dimmed to try to prevent potentially aiding the enemy.

"In February 2019, the United States Coast Guard decommissioned the lens and replaced it with LED technology," the City of Rancho Palos Verdes press release said. "The lens was removed from the lighthouse and generously loaned to the museum for display."

Portuguese whalers operated a whaling station on the Peninsula from 1869 to 1885 at a site that would later be home to the Portuguese Bend Beach Club. The new Shore Whalers exhibit features a replica whaling shack and a variety of whaling tools from the era, including a toggle head harpoon, flensing knives, tongs and a trypot, which was used to boil blubber for oil extraction, the press release said.

The collection of artifacts made with baleen, whale oil and other whale parts displays the wide range of items that whale products were used for before petroleum became dominant.