Book excerpt: This report provides an accurate record of the 33-year history of the Beach Erosion Board (BEB), predecessor of the Coastal Engineering Research Center (CERC). The report discusses the events which led to the creation of the BEB, and the significant effects these events had upon the BEB's course of direction. Also included are references to the many people who contributed to the formation and implementation of BEB programs and the major theoretical and technological advances in coastal engineering. (Author).