In 1903 Arthur Parson built the islands of Naples in the marshy Bixby Slough of the artificial Alamitos Bay , in the mouth of the San Gabriel River . The design was by the firm Mayberry & Parker . The concept of canals and gondolas was similar to the " Venice of America " developed by Abbot Kinney up the coast . Parson 's Naples Land Company called its plans the " Dreamland of Southern California " , and projected that " through the canals and under the high arching bridges gay gondoliers will propel their crafts like those in the waters of the Adriatic under the blue skies of Italy . " The project was completed in the 1920s , then rebuilt after the 1933 Long Beach earthquake
1933 Long Beach earthquake
1933 Long Beach earthquake
Naples, Long Beach