Alexander Rosborough Fraser (1856-1923) was eulogized as “the founder of Ocean Park“. While not exactly true, he certainly was the king of Ocean Park during its heyday as an amusement resort. Alex Fraser was born in New Brunswick and grew up in Michigan. He ran businesses like a cheese factory and a sewing machine store before he, his wife Appalona (1860-1926), and their kids Ethel, Edna, and Earl relocated to Los Angeles in 1886. Fraser soon made his name – and a ton of money – as a real estate broker. Setting his sights on bringing the moribund Ocean Park to life, in 1900 he brought his family out here, subdivided a 13 acre tract with George A. Hart, and named Fraser Avenue, where he made his home (at least for a while). Two years later, he and George M. Jones purchased 167 beachfront acres from Abbot Kinney and T.H. and Matilda Dudley for the development of Ocean Park. There Fraser would build a casino, a bathhouse, an auditorium, and the infamous “Million Dollar Pier”, which opened in 1911 and burned down a year later. He’s also credited with conceiving (in 1906) a concrete promenade between Ocean Park and Venice. You know it as the Venice Boardwalk.
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