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C−History
History · Pleasure Point

Half of Pleasure Point’s homes were built after 1967

More historic than 24% of U.S. towns · #391 of 847 in California. What drives it

Most of Pleasure Point was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1967. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1912 on, and the census since 1960.

0on the National Register
7%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Grmc922 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

About Pleasure Point’s history

How historic is Pleasure Point?

C−

More historic than 24% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
History grade

What drives Pleasure Point’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Pleasure Point is more historic than 24% of U.S. towns, #391 of 847 in California. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Pleasure Point’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 19407.4% of homes (±2.6) · typical CA town 3.4% · U.S. 8.4%C+National RegisterNo listings counted · typical CA town 0.0 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 24%
NewerOlder
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 54%

Few California towns list much on the Register (a typical California town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Pleasure Point’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (31% of California towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±2.6 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: our sources. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Pleasure Point’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages9 hamlets and corners are still on the map.On the map since 19126 editions of the USGS map, 1912 to 1994. Watch Pleasure Point change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Pleasure Point’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Pleasure Point’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Places that used to be

Old corners

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Bell Harbor Mobile Home ParkCastle Mobile EstatesOcean Breeze Mobile Home ParkOpal Cliff Park Mobile Home ParkOpal CliffsShangri La EstatesSnug Harbor Mobile Home ParkTony Ziro Mobile Living Mobile Home ParkTrailer Haven

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

On the map

Pleasure Point on the map, 1912 to 1994

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Pleasure Point. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Pleasure Point on the 1912 USGS mapPleasure Point on the 1940 USGS mapPleasure Point on the 1954 USGS mapPleasure Point on the 1968 USGS mapPleasure Point on the 1980 USGS mapPleasure Point on the 1994 USGS map1912Capitola sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Pleasure Point.

The story so far

Pleasure Point, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Pleasure Point yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Pleasure Point is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Cruz County, California, United States. Pleasure Point sits at an elevation of 33 feet (10 m). The 2020 United States census reported Pleasure Point's population was 5,821. Prior to the 2010 census, this CDP was called Opal Cliffs.

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

Pleasure Point, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1870s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s1 item
1889 hatch map18791889 hatch mapMap
Today9 recent
Pleasure Point Capitola 20212021Pleasure Point Capitola 2021Pleasure Point Santa Cruz California2013Pleasure Point Santa Cruz CaliforniaPleasure Point Beach2013Pleasure Point BeachPleasure Pizza In Santa Cruz California2013Pleasure Pizza In Santa Cruz CaliforniaPleasure Pizza In Santa Cruz CA2013Pleasure Pizza In Santa Cruz CAA Beach At2013A Beach AtPleasure Pt Park sign2007Pleasure Pt Park signPleasure Pt Night Fighters plaque2007Pleasure Pt Night Fighters plaqueCrushed house2007Crushed house
People over time

Pleasure Point, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0006,5001960198020002020Peak: 5,940

Between 3,825 and 5,940 people in every census since 1960.

5 censuses, 1960–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Pleasure Point’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

Famous people close to Pleasure Point

Nobody well known was born in Pleasure Point itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Adam ScottAmerican actor · b. 1973
Marisa MillerAmerican model · b. 1978
Beverly GarlandAmerican actress · b. 1926
Luke RockholdAmerican mixed martial artist · b. 1984
Edmund McMillenAmerican video game designer · b. 1980
Lynden GoochAmerican soccer player · b. 1995
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Capitola5 historic placesBTwin LakesIts storyC

Questions about Pleasure Point’s history

How does Pleasure Point rank for history?

Pleasure Point is more historic than 24% of U.S. towns, #391 of 847 in California. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

How old are the homes in Pleasure Point?

7% of Pleasure Point’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.6 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1967.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (10), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.