Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, United States, bordered by Los Angeles on three sides. The city was founded as a Spanish encampment on 3 August 1769, when Gaspar de Portola and a group of Spanish explorers arrived in the area to colonize it. On 30 November 1886, Santa Monica was incorporated as a city, and it became a famed resort town in the early 20th century due to its beautiful beaches, its hot weather, the popularity of the Santa Monica Pier and the Santa Monica Beach, and its scenic view of the Pacific Ocean. In 2016, Santa Monica had a population of 92,478 people.