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by Vincent J. Dicks (Author)
The Jersey Shore as a beach destination has a long history. Its initial blossoming had its roots in Revolutionary America.In the period just after the Civil War, religious groups, speculators and the very wealthy built out sixteen beachside communities for Victorian era vacations.One town, Sea Girt had an early start, but took almost 50 years to prosper. A 1908 land sales brochure advertised: "Sea Girt is the last and only accessible large tract on the North Jersey Coast still undeveloped." It didn't mention the 1875 brochure, two auctions, five groups of investors, or 35 years of delays, but hinted with the cryptic phrase "...due to the peculiar conditions attending to its ownership."It turns out these "conditions" were in fact peculiar. Presidential politics, bank fraud, robber barons, forgery and fugitives played a large role in the delayed development of the little town described in a late 1800s newspaper as "The most beautiful strip of sand on earth."This is the Jersey Shore history you have never heard.Anyone with an interest in the origins of Long Branch, Asbury Park, Ocean Grove, Belmar, Bradley Beach, Manasquan and particularly Spring Lake and Sea Girt will find interesting information. The story encompasses true crime narratives, religious revivalism, Quakerism, the Civil War, and Bossism. It also gives a Shore perspective on Revolutionary War History, the Industrial Revolution and in particular the development of the Railroad and Steel, hotel and hospitality industries, much of it emanating out of Philadelphia.While there is scandal and intrigue, it is also the story of families who made this area a place of fame, and were good to their neighbors and promoted kindness in the world.
