Moonstone Beach

[2] As the City of Redondo Beach took shape, visitors day-tripping from Los Angeles as well as tourists from the East Coast gathered the moonstones from the many mounds of gemstones washed ashore.

The carpenter persuaded his fiancé to join him in Southern California as his bride as he bragged about the beautiful moonstones washing up on the local beaches.

It is believed that 10,000 loads[vague] of the stones were crushed and used in the foundation of the Southern California Edison plant built in Redondo Beach in 1907.

With the addition of breakwaters, dredging, and a harbor in the late 1950s, the contour of the Redondo Beach waterfront has changed and moonstones are no longer deposited along its shores.

Beginning just south of the popular beach, streets running east–west feature gemstone names alphabetically such as Agate, Beryl, Carnelian, Diamond, Emerald, Garnet, Jasper, Opal, Pearl, Ruby, Sapphire, and Topaz.