Top Beaches- Past Winners

Every year around Memorial Day Weekend, a real-life scientist who is more widely known as "Dr. Beach" announces a list of ten "Best Beaches in America." And every year, the winner is excluded from future lists. These pages highlight some of the great beaches that "Dr. Beach" has picked in the past.

See also Dr. Beach's current picks, America's Best Beaches 2011.

"Dr. Beach" is Dr. Stephen P. Leatherman, a scientist who for decades has studied beaches, shore erosion, and storm impacts. His interesting Dr. Beach website has information about beaches, and an explanation of the many "Beach Criteria" he uses to "diagnose" a shore.

Dr. Beach is also a scientist who'll pose for photos with a stethoscope and a conch shell, and who clearly has a deep love for beaches. As the doctor says: "Nothing restores the body and soul like a stay at the beach. We are naturally drawn to the rhythmic pounding of the waves as if returning to our primordial beginnings."

- continue to Top Beach in America for 2010:Coopers Beach, Southampton, New York