History of Dinosaur Caves
For ten thousand years the Chumash Indians lived in the Pismo Beach area, They were hunter-gatherers and undoubtedly enjoyed this spectacular spot with its abundance of birds, fish and shellfish. With the coming of the Spanish Missions, the tribes and lands around Pismo Beach and Shell Beach came came under the control of Mission San Luis Obispo. The local Mission was part of an 800,000 animal cattle, hog and sheep empire run by the Franciscan padres that stretched from San Francisco to San Diego. After Mexico won its independence in 1821 and confiscated church property in California (1834 to 1836) the area including Dinosaur Caves became part of Rancho Pismo, granted by the Mexican government to Jose Ortega in 1840.
Rancho Pismo began where Spyglass Ravine meets the ocean, continues southeast along the shore to Oceano, then north along but excluding Arroyo Grande Creek to the Strother Park area. The Rancho border then travels west across the hills to the valley behind Shell Beach then down Spyglass Ravine back to the ocean.
Less than a decade later, the Rancho became the property of Isaac Sparks. The full story of the transaction between he and Seņor Ortega are lost to history, but they include a card game, a herd of cattle, and a line of credit at Sparks' general store in Santa Barbara.
Sparks eventually sold the part of the Rancho from Shell Beach to Grover Beach to one of his employees, John Michael Price. Mr. Price subdivided his share of the Rancho in 1886, and the area began to grow. Price's historic home, built in what is now known as Price Canyon, is another park owned by the City of Pismo Beach and being developed by the Friends of the Price House.
By the 1920's, the town of Shell Beach had streets laid out, with the 14 acres at the southern end of town remaining a single parcel. That parcel became home to The Pacific Museum, a geologically based tourist attraction. In addition to this splendid scenery, the Museum offered tourists who came by train or Model-T Ford a nature walk into "The Caverns of Mystery," underground caves carved in soft rock by wave action. The Caverns fell victim to the Depression of the 1930's.
Sometime in the 1940's, H. Douglas Brown opened a shell and lapidary shop on the site. He also restored the cable foot bridge to what then became known as Brown's Rock, located at the western edge of the property between Dinosaur Caves Park and Margo Dodd Park. Brown's activities focussed on gemstones, the geology of the area and the history of the Chumash.
Brown began constructing a large concrete dinosaur to attract tourists vacationing up and down Highway 1 during the booming post war years. A doorway in the side of the dinosaur opened to an 80 foot long tunnel path studded with fake gemstones for atmosphere. Natural holes to the sky provided light for the foot journey through the old Caves of Mystery to the beach. Brown named them Dinosaur Caves, reportedly regaling tourists with tales of dinosaur remains found in the caves. Because neighbors objected to the dinosaur, Brown never completed construction, leaving the dinosaur headless for more than a decade. A fire followed by a bulldozer brought about an end to the creature in the 1960's. Brown continued his lapidary business until the caves collapsed, along with a large portion of the bluff, in the early 1970's.
The property sat fallow for another decade. Hotels were proposed for the site in the 1980's, but none came to fruition. The City of Pismo Beach bought the property in 1992. Through the cooperative efforts of the City of Pismo Beach, California Coastal Conservancy, the Dinosaur Caves Preservation Society and many others, this public park was dedicated in June, 2003. The park is still under construction, and built primarily with grants and private donations from $25 to $50,000 with significant support from the citizens and the City of Pismo Beach.
The wondrous creature and the caves live on in the memory of old timers who visited the park in the 1950's and 60's. If you have ANY photos or stories of the dinosaur, the rock shop, or other activities in the park before 1990, please contact the Dinosaur Caves Preservation Society at (805) 773-6777. They can professionally copy slides, photos and documents without harm in seconds.
If you would like to contribute to the completion of this wonderful Park at Dinosaur Caves, many opportunities exist. For more information contact Marilee Hyman at (805) 773-6777 mhyman@charter.net or Dr. Marc Lebed at (805) 773-5661 mrlebed@aol.com. The Preservation Society is a 501c(3) corporation so donations are tax deductible.
