Tuna Club opens for one-day tours

AVALON – Guests to Catalina Island are invited to enter the usually closed doors of the historic Tuna Club on Aug. 1, when the members’ only club opens to visitors.

The world-famous Tuna Club, in partnership with the Catalina Island Museum, traditionally hosts tours during the one-day event. Those taking the tour will learn about the nationally registered historic landmark that stands as the oldest fishing club in the United States. Fishing trophies, artifacts and photographs are among many relics exhibited in the club, documenting the history of big-game fishing and the first rod and reel catchers of tuna, marlin and broadbill swordfish.

“Thousands of visitors and island residents pass by the clubhouse every day curious to know more about it,” said Catalina Island Museum’s Executive Director Michael De Marsche. “We are excited to be able to offer this exclusive opportunity to our members and the community of Avalon. The preservation of island history is an important link between the museum and the Tuna Club, and we are honored to partner with them.”

Founded in 1898 by Charles Frederick Holder, the club’s illustrious history includes a number of famous anglers, such as British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, movie director Cecil B. DeMille, actors Charlie Chaplin, Bing Crosby and Stan Laurel, writer Zane Grey and U.S. Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Herbert Hoover.

Tours will be offered at 1 p.m., 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. Tickets are $30 for members of the museum and $35 for the general public. Rock Gosselin and Bart Glass, lifelong fishermen, Avalon residents and Tuna Club members, will conduct tours sharing the unique history of the club and its role in the birth of sportfishing. For more information or to purchase tickets, call 310-510-2414 or visit, CatalinaMuseum.org

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