Ocean City’s Historic Hotels
By Fred Miller and Susan Miller
()
About this ebook
Fred Miller
I am a retired jack of all trades, with a BAS in electronic engineering. Along with drawing and painting, there are many things that I like to do, including writing and riding my harley.
Read more from Fred Miller
Ocean City: America's Greatest Family Resort Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ocean City:: 1950-1980 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTuscarawas County, Ohio Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOcean City Beach Patrol Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSaint John West: Volume II Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ocean City Baby Parade Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Ocean City’s Historic Hotels
Related ebooks
Ocean City:: Volume II Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Ocean City, New Jersey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOcean City, New Jersey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSea Isle City Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Rochester's Lakeside Resorts and Amusement Parks Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHistoric Silver Bluff: Rediscovering Miami's Neighborhoods Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMontreal's Expo 67 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHidden History of South Jersey: From the Capitol to the Shore Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMontgomery County Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAsbury Park Revisited Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHershey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDetroit's Historic Hotels and Restaurants Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSaginaw Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsNew York's Original Penn Station: The Rise and Tragic Fall of an American Landmark Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOcean City:: Volume I Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Princeton Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Crossing California: A Cultural Topography of a Land of Wonder and Weirdness Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Mid-South Fair: Celebrating 150 Years Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPetaluma and Santa Rosa Railway Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPittsburgh's East Liberty Valley Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Buried Beneath Cleveland: Lost Cemeteries of Cuyahoga County Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Lady's Country Companion; Or, How to Enjoy a Country Life Rationally Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPrince William County Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhen Did the Statue of Liberty Turn Green?: And 101 Other Questions About New York City Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Spring City and Royersford Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSt. Charles Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Great Lakes Car Ferries Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Yamasaki in Detroit: A Search for Serenity Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDenver Landmarks and Historic Districts Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPhiladelphia Architecture Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5
Travel For You
Fodor's Essential Japan Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLonely Planet Mexico Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Fodor's Best Road Trips in the USA: 50 Epic Trips Across All 50 States Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fodor's Bucket List USA: From the Epic to the Eccentric, 500+ Ultimate Experiences Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCockpit Confidential: Everything You Need to Know About Air Travel: Questions, Answers, and Reflections Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5RV Hacks: 400+ Ways to Make Life on the Road Easier, Safer, and More Fun! Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFodor's Bucket List Europe: From the Epic to the Eccentric, 500+ Ultimate Experiences Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSpanish Verbs - Conjugations Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLet's Build A Camper Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Drives of a Lifetime: 500 of the World's Most Spectacular Trips Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Cool Japan Guide: Fun in the Land of Manga, Lucky Cats and Ramen Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Travel Agent Secrets - How to Plan Your Vacation Like a Pro Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lonely Planet The Travel Book: A Journey Through Every Country in the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fodor's New Orleans Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Northeast Treasure Hunter's Gem & Mineral Guide (5th Edition): Where and How to Dig, Pan and Mine Your Own Gems and Minerals Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFodor's The Complete Guide to the National Parks of the West: with the Best Scenic Road Trips Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings50 Great American Places: Essential Historic Sites Across the U.S. Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fodor's Best Weekend Road Trips Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLiving the RV Life: Your Ultimate Guide to Life on the Road Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSpotting Danger Before It Spots You: Build Situational Awareness To Stay Safe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Van Life Cookbook: Delicious Recipes, Simple Techniques and Easy Meal Prep for the Road Trip Lifestyle Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Everything Travel Guide to Ireland: From Dublin to Galway and Cork to Donegal - a complete guide to the Emerald Isle Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTales from the Haunted South: Dark Tourism and Memories of Slavery from the Civil War Era Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Ocean City’s Historic Hotels
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Ocean City’s Historic Hotels - Fred Miller
advertisements.
INTRODUCTION
It has been said that hotels helped build Ocean City into the successful community that it is today. Ocean City was founded in 1879 by five Methodist ministers—the Reverends William H. Burrell and William B. Wood and brothers S. Wesley Lake, Ezra B. Lake, and James E. Lake—and the Lake brothers’ father, Simon Lake. Their aim was to build a Christian seaside resort, much like that of Ocean Grove, New Jersey, several miles to the north. But the men envisioned one big difference between Ocean City and Ocean Grove: theirs would be a year-round community as well as a summer retreat.
To that end, they quickly organized a government run by the Ocean City Association, brought their families to live here, started a school, printed a newspaper, and encouraged tradesmen and businessmen of all types to move to the fledgling city with their families. They recognized that transportation would be necessary to bring people from surrounding communities, so they built a railroad between Pleasantville and Somers Point, New Jersey, and bought a steamship to bring passengers across Great Egg Harbor Bay to Ocean City.
To introduce the new resort community, they organized excursions to bring people from as far away as Philadelphia, 60 miles to the west.
While building a community was uppermost, religion was never far from the minds of the founding members. They stipulated in all property deeds that there was to be no production or sale of alcoholic beverages, and they passed ordinances banning amusement and commercial activity on Sundays. During the summer, they organized religious retreats centered around a large tent on campgrounds between Wesley and Asbury Avenues and Fifth and Sixth Streets, where services and prayer meetings were held and different ministers spoke to the crowds. Visitors were able to bring their own tents to the campgrounds or rent tents for a small fee.
As the camp meetings grew in popularity and transportation to the island became easier, there was a great need to house the summer visitors. The first hotel, the Piqua, opened in 1880. Soon, more hotels and guesthouses were built. Many of the hotels stayed open throughout the year. By 1900, some 29 hotels had been built on the island. The seaside resort was a success!
But more than simple hotels were needed to keep the community flourishing. With the year-round population increasing, the school open, businesses of all kinds thriving, and a government working well, it was still felt by many residents that something was holding the city back from all that it could be. After much discussion and a study by a committee appointed by the chamber of commerce, it was decided that a new, large, modern, oceanfront hotel should be built. Such a structure was deemed necessary if the community was to keep up with its resort neighbors.
In 1922, the Ocean Front Hotel Corporation of Ocean City was organized, led by prominent local businessmen. It was charged with finding a location, constructing, and operating the new hotel. All city residents would have the opportunity to buy shares in the new corporation and thus participate in this endeavor. It was decided that the hotel would be built at Eleventh Street and the boardwalk. Ocean City native Vivian Smith was chosen as the architect. On July 28, 1923, the Flanders Hotel opened with much fanfare. Dignitaries from as far away as New York City attended the gala dinner, and newspapers from up and down the East Coast raved about the new hotel.
On October 11, 1927, the well-being created by the prosperity of these years was shattered by a devastating fire that started under the boardwalk at Ninth Street and spread west toward the central business district of the city. Many stores, businesses, and homes were destroyed before the blaze was brought under control. Flames could be seen in Somers Point across the bay, and fire companies from all over rushed to the city’s aid. When the fire was finally halted, two of the largest and most opulent hotels, the Traymore and the Normandie-on-the-Sea, were gone. The Flanders Hotel, fortunately, had been spared.
As the city struggled to recover from the fire, it was found that nearly 500 hotel rooms had been destroyed. There was a great need for more rooms, but by late 1929, when the country was overtaken by the Great Depression, only a few new hotels had been built. The owners of those hotels made sure that they were advertised as fireproof.
World War II followed the Depression, and during the war, the federal government ordered all building be halted as the materials were needed for the war effort.
Although No Vacancy signs were commonplace in the summer after World War II, as the country slowly recovered, many families found themselves without the resources to spend their usual week or two at a hotel in Ocean City. Guesthouses were less-expensive alternatives that still allowed families to spend their vacations in their favorite seashore resort. Many of Ocean City’s summer homes were very large houses, usually three stories, with numerous bedrooms and large living rooms. These were easily converted into guesthouses, which had the added attraction of making patrons truly feel like guests in the host’s home. They offered a personal touch rarely found in a hotel.
Even though the hotels and guesthouses were doing well, there was concern about the future: modern motels were being built in neighboring resorts, giving the older hotels serious competition. In the spring of 1950, the local hotel and guesthouse owners, concerned that this would happen in Ocean City, convinced Mayor Edward Bowker and Commissioners Augustus S. Goetz and Henry Roeser Jr. to adopt an amendment to the zoning ordinance, forbidding the building of motels. Few new hotels were built during this time, possibly because developers were leery of building hotels at a time when motels seemed to be more desirable