A00018 - Bruce's Beach Revisited

In January, I visited Bruce's Beach for the first time.  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce%27s_Beach

Bruce's Beach is now an oddly beautiful oasis in the midst of over developed Manhattan Beach.  Frankly, it would be a shame to develop it now, but it is also a shame that for almost a century the Bruce family was deprived of the economic benefit associated with owning the land.  It will be interesting to see how this all turns out.

As for my connection to the Bruce family of Bruce's Beach fame, I am not certain of any direct connection.  What I do know is that there was a Bruce Family Reunion at the Hyatt Wilshire Hotel in Los Angeles, from July 3 to 5, 1987.   This 1987 Reunion was the Third Annual Family Reunion and it was "Dedicated to Elizah and Lizzie Cruz Bruce and Their Descendants".

According to the program,

"Elizah Bruce was born in 1832 in Tennessee.  Lizzie Cruz Bruce was born in 1834 in Tennessee.  They migrated from Tennessee by way of Missouri and Arkansas and finally settled in Texas.

"A son, Thomas was born in 1855 in Missouri. A daughter, Ellen was born in 1857 in Missouri.  A son, Charles was born in 1863 in Arkansas and another son, William was born in 1873 in Texas.  They were the parents of sixteen children.  Other children were, Mattie, Cindy, Jim, Fannie, Hattie, Katie, Carrie, Emma, Harriett, ( ), ( ), ( ).  According to the 1900 Census, Elizah and Lizzie resided ... in Sherman, Texas.


*****

I did not attend the 1987 Reunion, but my sister did.  She gave the program to me, along with photos and funeral service programs, two months before she passed away in March 2019.  In the same 1987 Reunion program, my sister wrote a note that explained that our connection to the Bruce family is through the Thomas Bruce who was born in 1855 in Missouri.  According to my sister, Thomas and Susan Bruce were the parents of Eliza Jane Bruce. Eliza Jane Bruce married Henry Jones Jenkins.  They had eleven children.  One of their children was Luther L. Jenkins, Sr., my grandfather ... and the man I knew as Papa Jenkins,  

As for the connection to Charles and Willa Bruce of Bruce Beach fame. the Charles Bruce who was born in 1863 in Arkansas, and who is the younger brother of Thomas Bruce, may be the Charles Bruce who purchased the land that became Bruce's Beach.  If so, the Bruce Beach family would be distant cousins. 

Irrespective of any direct family connection, I have developed an interest to Bruce's Beach and the issues that are associated with it.  And I find that I am not alone in my interest in the subject.  Apparently, Brad Pitt and Viola Davis have developed a connection to the story and an Amazon series on Bruce Beach may be coming to the small screen soon.  

Peace,

Everett Jenkins
Fairfield, California
February 8, 2022

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