When automobiles became commercialized, the original canals were paved over and all that remain are the Short Line waterways

Venice of America featured seven distinct canals, and the southern Short Line canals formed a few years later

In the city's earliest years, visitors to Venice of America would arrive by streetcar or railroad and travel through the city by footpath, canal or miniature railroad

Abbot Kinney opened the Venice of America canals in 1905, making several references


Hidden past the famous boardwalk of Venice, California, a long lost history has emerged of how the city's original canals were created.

In the canals of Abbot Kinney's Venice of America that are now disguised as residential streets, the developer made several references to the city's Italian namesake, including Italianate architecture.

Venice of America opened on July 4, 1905, with seven distinct canals that formed an irregular grid pattern in a two-mile stretch of former saltwater marshlands that encompassed four islands, according to KCET.

Three of the canals referred to celestial bodies - Aldebaran, Venus and Altair - while the largest, which led to a large saltwater lagoon, was named the Grand Canal.

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Beyond it's famous boardwalk, Venice, California used to be filled with a series of canals and footpaths that residents and tourists used to travel through the city

Seven waterways comprised The Venice of America canals, designed by conservationist Abbot Kinney. They opened to the public on July 4, 1905

Of the seven canals, some were named after celestial bodies, including Aldebaran, Venus and Altair, while the largest was named Grand Canal

Grand Canal (pictured on the far right), the largest of the waterways, opened into a saltwater lagoon, pictured at the bottom of this photo. Six more canals, named the Short Line, were later linked to Venice

Kinney hoped that Venice of America would bring old-world charm to the United States, so he referenced the Italian Venice architecturally and culturally throughout his creation

Kinney's main goal was to evoke the old-world charm of the Mediterranean Venice, but also served as part of the city's transportation.

In the city's earliest years, visitors to Venice of America would arrive by streetcar or railroad and travel through the city by footpath.

Alternatives to walking were the canals - in which gondoliers would row tourists for a fee while singing in Italian - and a miniature railroad that circled the development.

Homeowners in the area could also travel through the waterways with their own canoes and boats.

Soon after Kinney's canals emerged, a second, southern set of canals called the Short Line canals appeared, which linked up with the existing waterways through the Grand Canal.

And though the canals, particularly the original Venice of America waterways, contributed to Kinney's real estate development in the area, only the six Short Line canals still exist today.

Tourists could reach Venice by streetcar, using footpaths to travel once they arrived. Gondoliers would row visitors around for a fee while singing in Itallian

All of the original Venice of America canals have since been paved over, because the commercialization of the automobile meant more cars in an area that had to be come compatible to such transportation

And though the canals, particularly the original Venice of America waterways, contributed to Kinney's real estate development in the area, only the six Short Line canals still exist today

This 1910 advertisement for the Venice Canal Subdivision shows some of the Short Line canals that still survive in Venice to this day

The Venice canals were dredged out of out of saltwater marshlands prior to their opening in 1905. Much of the canal space was later filled road pavement

Though it was a popular residential and tourist spot, the canals began to get polluted in the 1920s due to the rise in the automobile and the poor circulation in the waterways

By the 1920s, the canals were polluted, due to poor circulation in the area, and many visitors were arriving by automobile, as opposed to public transportation.

Since it was a city designed for pedestrian traffic, Venice offered very little parking and streets were not compatible.

Though residents resisted the change, by 1924, business owners and city leaders adapted the city's infrastructure to accommodate automobiles.

The two Pacific Electric trolleyways running through Venice were widened and paved. And the city named the two roads Pacific and Electric to honor what had been in place previously.

And most of the canals were filled in and paved in order to be converted into public roads.

On July 1, 1929, the first load of dirt was dumped into Coral Canal by dump trucks, and Venice's public officials held a special ceremony to mark the starting of a new era.

Many residential homes looked on to the canals, including Aldebaran Canal (pictured), and homeowners could use their own boats and canoes to travel throughout the city

Though the canal served as a great form of transportation, residents also used footpaths and a miniature railroad that circled the area

Though residents resisted the change, by 1924, business owners and city leaders adapted the city's infrastructure to accommodate automobiles

All of the Venice of America canals were filled in to create roads and the two Pacific Electric trolleyways running through Venice were widened and paved

Today Venice Beach's famous boardwalk is a cultural hub filled with shops and restaurants that see millions of visitors each year

Some of the city's canals, like this one, are still in tact. The Short Line waterways that were constructed years after the Venice of America canals were not filled in because it was not a populated enough area in the 1920s

California Governor C. C. Young 'congratulated Venice on her foresight in sacrificing sentiment to progress,' the Venice Vanguard reported at the time, according to KCET.

By the end of 1929, all of the original Venice of America canals had been filled and paved over, ready for automobiles to drive through the streets. An underground storm drain system flushed the canal water into the sea.

More than 90,000 cubic yards of sediment were poured into the canals to create roads in the city.

Only the six Short Line waterways, just south of the newly paved Venice of America canals remained, and still remain today. The area was did not have a large enough population in the 1920s to warrant paving the canals into roads.

Instead of naming the roads after their respective canals, the people of Venice changed nearly all of their names.Aldebaran Canal became Market Street; Coral Canal, Main Street; Venus Canal, San Juan Avenue; Lion Canal, Windward Avenue. Only Grand Canal kept its former name, becoming Grand Boulevard.

On July 1, 1929, the first load of dirt was dumped into Coral Canal by dump trucks, and Venice's public officials held a special ceremony to mark the starting of a new era

The lagoon, where many boats gathered and shops opened business, was paved over and in the middle a round-a-bout was formed in the middle

On July 1, 1929, the first load of dirt was dumped into Coral Canal by dump trucks, and Venice's public officials held a special ceremony to mark the starting of a new era

Six canals remain to this day, just south of the Venice of America former waterways in residential areas