Tell Your Costa Mesa Story Win prizes and be featured at the Costa Mesa Historical Society’s 60th Anniversary Celebration ENTER THE CHALLENGE Choose One Way to Enter 📸 Photos Submit 5 selfies at Costa Mesa locations or events+ 2 sentence caption for each 🎥 Video Create an original 3 minute videoHighlight your Costa Mesa experience ✍️ Essay Write a 1 to 2 page essayDescribe Costa Mesa in your own words Win Prizes iPads • $100 Gift Cards…
Join the Costa Mesa Historical Society for an elegant evening celebrating sixty years of preserving the history, architecture, stories, and cultural legacy of Costa Mesa. This special anniversary event will bring together community supporters and preservation advocates for an evening reflecting on the past while helping shape the future of the Society. The evening begins with a private open house at the Costa Mesa Historical Society Museum, followed by a reception and dinner at the Norma Hertzog…
Saturday, August 29, 2026 | 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM Diego Sepúlveda Adobe & Estancia Park 1900 Adams Avenue, Costa Mesa, California The Costa Mesa Historical Society invites the community to join us for a special afternoon celebrating the Society’s 60th Anniversary at one of Costa Mesa’s most treasured historic landmarks, the Diego Sepúlveda Adobe. “An Afternoon at the Adobe” will bring together local museums, historical organizations, preservation groups, community partners, and families for a free public…
Sponsorship Opportunities We are honored to invite you to support the Costa Mesa Historical Society’s 60th Anniversary Celebration, a special milestone event honoring six decades of preserving, protecting, and sharing the rich history of Costa Mesa, while honoring the Segerstrom Family. For 60 years, the Costa Mesa Historical Society has served as a meaningful connection between our city’s past, present, and future. Through our archives, photographs, oral histories, exhibits, educational programs, and community events, we work to…
As the nation marks its 250th birthday in 2026, Costa Mesa has its own story to tell about the last time America reached a milestone like this. Fifty years ago, as the country prepared to turn 200, this community didn't simply celebrate — it organized, it innovated, and it inspired a generation of young people to engage with their history in ways that left a lasting mark. The photos and memories that follow are a reminder of…
Sunday, April 19, 2026 | 2:00–4:00 pmMembers Only Event Join the Costa Mesa Historical Society for a special docent-led tour of the Segerstrom Center for the Arts, one of Orange County’s most celebrated cultural landmarks and a defining institution in Costa Mesa’s artistic legacy. Guided by knowledgeable Segerstrom Center docents, this exclusive behind-the-scenes experience offers rare insight into the history, architecture, and vision that shaped this world-class performing arts campus. Participants will gain a deeper appreciation for…
Fresh from a major statewide historic designation, the Costa Mesa Historical Society is honored to present H. Ernie Nishii, President of the Historic Wintersburg Conservancy, for a timely and important speakers program. On January 2, 2026, Historic Wintersburg was officially listed on the California Register of Historical Resources, recognizing it as one of the most significant surviving sites associated with Japanese American history in Orange County. This rare designation affirms decades of community advocacy and places Historic…
For over 60 years, the Costa Mesa Historical Society has worked to protect the stories, photos, artifacts, and memories that define our city. Today, your support ensures that these treasures remain alive for future generations. ***NOTE: this Giving Season event goes through December 31st, 2025! Why Your Gift Matters: Digitize fragile photographs, maps, and newspapers Upgrade archival tools and technology (video camera, audio recorder, still camera for events) Maintain exhibits and preserve irreplaceable artifacts Support volunteer programs…
Speakers Program & 2026 Board Installation Sunday, January 11, 2026 – 2:00- 4:00PM Norma Hertzog Community Center, Costa Mesa Celebrate the start of a milestone year! The Costa Mesa Historical Society is turning 60, and there has never been a more exciting time to be a member of the one and only society that matters in Costa Mesa. Join us as we kick off this landmark anniversary with a special edition of our Speakers Program and the…
Experience the art and architecture of the Segerstrom Center for the Arts on a special outdoor walking tour led by two Center Docents from the Segerstrom Center for the Arts, alongside Council Member Arlis Reynolds. The Tour has been filled! If you want to be on Stand by List, please fill out the form! The tour begins on the south side of Segerstrom Center for the Arts Plaza overlooking the fountain, continues through the serene Noguchi Garden,…