PC: LA County Library
William Wrigley Jr. , the chewing-gum businessman, became a major investor in the Santa Catalina Island Company in 1919 and helped expand tourism, infrastructure and attractions across the island. His family’s involvement continued after his death in 1932, eventually shifting towards protecting Catalina’s undeveloped landscapes. In 1972, the Catalina Island Conservancy was established. Three years later, the family transferred 42,135 acres to the organisation, placing roughly 88% of the island under its care. Wrigley became a major investor in 1919 and eventually gained controlling interest. Before that happened, the Santa Catalina Island Company had already entered into an agreement with Los Angeles County in 1974 covering about 41,000 acres. On 15 February 1975, Philip K. Wrigley, his wife Helen and his sister Dorothy Wrigley Offield, acting through the Santa Catalina Island Company, deeded 42,135 acres of Santa Catalina Island to the Catalina Island Conservancy. The figure represents roughly 88% of the island. The 1975 conveyance became the key step in securing permanent protection for most of the island. The Conservancy was formed in 1972; the 42,135-acre transfer was completed in 1975.
As reported by Love Catalina Island Tourism Authority, Chewing gum eventually became the centre of the business. For more than half a century, the Wrigley family helped shape the future of Catalina Island, first as a commercial investment and later as a conservation legacy. Brands including Juicy Fruit, Spearmint and Doublemint helped turn the Wrigley name into a national one, while the company’s advertising became a major part of its success. By the time Wrigley became involved with Catalina, he had the money and commercial experience to reshape the island on a much larger scale. The Santa Catalina Island Company had been established in the 1890s by the Banning brothers, who had developed the island as a resort. The arrangement restricted development and provided for recreational and educational use while maintaining the area’s open-space character. Then came the larger and more permanent transfer. The transfer included most of Catalina’s interior and a substantial stretch of coastline, giving the Conservancy responsibility for an enormous area of land outside the main resort communities. The distinction between the two dates matters. The arrangement did not mean that every part of Catalina became a protected wilderness area with no tourism. The Santa Catalina Island Company retained land and continued operating much of the island’s resort and visitor business, particularly in Avalon and Two Harbors. The Conservancy became responsible for the much larger area of wildland. Catch the latest World News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.
William Wrigley Jr. was born in Philadelphia in 1861 and had already built a considerable business empire before Catalina entered his life. The most recognisable result was the Catalina Casino, completed in 1929, according to the Catalina Island Company. He had acquired an interest in the Chicago Cubs in 1916 and became the club’s principal owner in 1921. William Wrigley Jr. died in 1932, but his connection with Catalina did not end there. The Catalina Island Conservancy was established in 1972 with involvement from members of the Wrigley and Offield families.
Because the major land transfer did not actually occur in 1972, the timing is important. Players, journalists and baseball followers were introduced to Catalina, giving the island a national audience at a time when mass tourism and modern advertising were developing rapidly.
Wrigley also worked with designers Dorothy and Otis Shepard on promotional material for Catalina, according to Love Catalina Island Tourism Authority. His rise began in an unusual way. He initially sold his father’s soap, using baking powder as an incentive for customers to buy it. When people showed greater interest in the free product, he changed direction. Catalina was not simply a holiday destination waiting to be marketed, though. Its communities and infrastructure needed investment, and a major fire had devastated much of Avalon before Wrigley’s period of ownership. PC: LA County Library Wrigley put money into roads, utilities, housing and attractions while also working to make the island more accessible to visitors. His approach combined the practical side of running a large property with the publicity methods that had already made his chewing gum company successful. The circular building became an enduring part of Avalon’s waterfront and remains one of the island’s best-known landmarks. Wrigley’s influence also extended into sport. That same year, the Cubs began holding spring training on Catalina, starting a relationship with the island that lasted for almost three decades. The baseball connection mattered beyond the games themselves. Advertising, sporting events and unusual attractions helped establish the island as a destination rather than simply another piece of coastal property. His son, Philip Knight Wrigley, inherited an important role in the family’s island interests and continued many of the projects his father had started. The family maintained its involvement through the Santa Catalina Island Company while Catalina went through several different phases, including the disruption caused by the Second World War. Tourism later returned, and the island continued developing as a resort while large areas remained outside the built-up centres. There was also a gradual change in the family’s approach to the island’s undeveloped interior. Protecting Catalina’s landscape became a more formal objective rather than simply an aspect of managing the property. That shift eventually produced the Catalina Island Conservancy. Its purpose was to provide a permanent organisation responsible for conserving and managing much of Catalina’s natural land. Three years later, the Wrigley family completed the step that changed the ownership of most of Catalina’s interior.
