Fletcher Lake. c. 1999. No condos at the south end. Paul Goldfinger photo
40 years ago, the citizens of Ocean Grove fought off a proposed condominium on the South End of Fletcher Lake. It has been done before and can be done again!
Note that citizens formed a group to fight this thing. That citizen opposition was loud and insistent, and it plus the rejection of the idea by the Fire Department ultimately finished off the plan.
This 2 part video is shared by someone who is familiar with this precedent setting event.
Wake up and smell the sweet aroma of history in Ocean Grove. Thanks to the friend of OG who sent this to us.
On January 24, local historian and advocate Kevin Chambers made a provocative comment while discussing the Aurora. He said,
“Does the Aurora have any real history to it than the style in which it was built? No, it doesn’t, and since there are many other houses of the same style in OG, the loss of the Aurora would not effect the community than if it was truly unique to OG.”
Surely some of you saw his comment and would like him to explain it. It seems to me that he is saying that we have two standards of “historic” regarding OG architecture: a truly historic structure and an old building that “doesn’t have any real history to it.” The subtext is that it would even be OK to demolish the Aurora.
I can recall attending the 2013 hearing for demolition of the 134 year old Whitfield Hotel when a strong case was made that the old building was of no significance in terms of its architecture or its history in the Grove. Historians and other experts spoke and concluded that it had “no style” and was a “useless mess.” Citizens present agreed as did the HPC, so that old building was torn down to give way to four “reproductions” on crowded undersized lots .
Although we can’t exactly compare the Aurora to the Whitfield, clearly there are times when old structures should not be saved.
So is Kevin correct about the Aurora? Should the new owner be permitted to demolish it and put up condominiums? We already have heard about the idea of remodeling the Aurora and converting the building to 4 modern, luxury condo’s. And then there is the idea to demolish and put up single family homes.
Wouldn’t it be great if one of those public servants who are on the Historic Preservation Commission had the courage to comment here and help educate the public about this subject, but don’t hold your breath.
So maybe some of you Grovers who are knowledgeable about historic preservation in our town would comment.
Jack Bredin did in 2016 when he wrote a letter to BF and said, “A few months ago, at the public portion of a Committee Meeting, an attorney advised the Committee that ‘A historic district is a detriment to development.’ ”
Editor’s note: April 09. 2016. The Aurora was eventually converted to 4 condos.
2020. Paul Goldfinger photo. Aurora was sold as 4 condos; make believe that this conversion is historic. You can read more Aurora posts by doing a Blogfinger.net search. PG
Submitted by Ocean Grover Vincent Cannavo. Special to Blogfinger. Click to see more (or Seymour.)
Grover Vincent Cannavo found a number of Wesley Lake photographs on line which carry a copyright date of 1903, although the photos may have been taken earlier. In this image you are standing on the OG side of the Lake. We can see boats for hire as well as the A. Park amusements.
Vincent points out how different Asbury looked back then, although the OG side looks unchanged in other views. Notice how Lake Avenue was a walkway back then. No horse poop in sight.
That’s not surprising because the OG side managed to be a planned town, and the Victorian houses were somehow preserved even though there was no zoning, HPC or historical designations.
Thanks to Vincent for these images.
Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger
ANDY FARBER AND HIS ORCHESTRA WITH JOHN HENDRICKSON AND TERRY DONGIAN
Condolandia at the OG North End (As seen from Surf Ave.) Blogfinger photo. March, 2015.
By Paul Goldfinger, Editor , Blogfinger.net. 2015
For years the North End of Ocean Grove remained undeveloped by the OG Camp Meeting Association, the owners of the property. The land there was zoned for single family homes, and that seemed to be appropriate considering the Master Plan’s sympathetic attitude regarding the historic district.
In 2007, the Neptune Township Planning Board agreed that the Township should establish a “zone in need of redevelopment” at the North End, but they did not argue for a change in zoning. The Township then ordered a redevelopment plan to be drawn up.
It was the Township Committee which decided that the existing zoning should be changed to accommodate the new North End Redevelopment Plan (NERP) which would permit multiple uses for those 5+ acres including condominiums, single family homes, a hotel, commercial components and an underground parking garage.
Overriding the existing single family zoning was allowed under state law* when a “zone in need of redevelopment” has been declared. The goal of such zones is to bring back portions of New Jersey cities and towns which were considered to be so blighted that only government could restore those areas for the good of the city/town.
What did the Neptune Township Planning Board find that would justify the new designation? If you read the NERP plan, you will see a tortuous explanation to justify the new zone as something good for the town, with advantages outweighing disadvantages.
Whatever the rationalizations were, they led to a plan (NERP) that was turned into Neptune law in 2008 and which was supported by the Ocean Grove Home Owners Association, the Historic Preservation Commission and the Camp Meeting Association.
Once that happened, it was supposed to set in motion a sequence of events beginning with the formal choice of a redeveloper by the governing body (Neptune Committee.) That redeveloper was to sign a contract which detailed his obligations. We don’t know if such a contract actually exists.
We know that the redevelopers were chosen, not by the Township, but by the CMA who owns the property. The redevelopers who were named in 2008 consisted of the CMA itself and a group called “WAVE.” The Gannon company has been revealed as part of WAVE, but no other names have been disclosed.
We plan to post a series of articles on how this plan evolved, and the next one will be a review of what happened when the Township approved the redevelopers at a Committee meeting in June, 2008.
Our purpose is to inform the citizens of Ocean Grove as to what happened to bring us to 2015 and to figure out exactly where we stand now.
And then maybe some way can be found to block the commercialization of the North End.
We will also take a look at the Master Plan to see how it compares to the NERP.
By way of introduction, here is a quote from the Neptune Township Master Plan of 2011 regarding Ocean Grove–the “historic district:”
Goal: “To preserve the historic character, livability and property values of historic structures and neighborhoods by maintaining and rehabilitating historic housing, preventing the deterioration and demolition of historic structures, and encouraging new construction that is compatible in scale and design to the physical character of the surrounding neighborhood.”
* HillWallak.com notes on NJ redevelopment law: “As part of the plan, the municipality has the power to enact a redevelopment ordinance which can override the existing zoning for the area.”
KATHY BRIER. This song is dedicated to the OG Home Groaners Association that wanted the NERP in 2008, and now they say otherwise. What a shame they didn’t have the courage to oppose this plan when they had a chance to mobilize the citizens of OG and stand strong.
From Boardwalk Empire, HBO hit series. Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks won a Grammy for the soundtrack.
Ocean Grove, New Jersey. April 20, 2015. By Paul Goldfinger. 2022. Blogfinger.net. Click to enlarge.
By Paul Goldfinger, MD, Editor @Blogfinger
“I hereby acknowledge the good hand of God in leading me from the beginning until now.” With these words, written in 1897, Elwood H. Stokes began his autobiography called “Footprints in My Own Life” published in 1898 in Asbury Park by the Press of M., W. & C. Pennypacker.
A note on page 8 gives a clue as to why he was inspired to write this book. The frontispiece says “Upon these sea-bleached sands I wrote my name, but one swell of the rising waters wiped it out forever; so will the fast flowing billows of time soon erase my name from the records of earth, and the world will pass on as though a generation of us had never existed.”
Stokes (1815-1897) was born into a poor family of Quakers. He had an uncle named Job. When he was 16 years old he wanted to join the other boys in sinful activities. He said, “I tried to plunge into sin, but an invisible power held me back.” He married Hannah Neff when he was 23. They had one child–Mary.
After becoming a preacher in the Methodist Episcopal Church he traveled the circuit and later was given assignments in New Brunswick, Trenton, Newark and Morristown among a number of such New Jersey towns.
At the age of 29, in Long Branch, NJ, Stokes saw the ocean for the first time, and he was powerfully impressed. He said,”I looked! I was astounded! I had seen lofty mountains and noble rivers; I had seen the beautiful valley, the sloping hill, the winding rivulet; I had seen nature and art combined, forming the most romantic landscapes;—-but never, never had I seen a sight so majestic as the mighty ocean.”
He rose in the ranks and was present on July 31, 1869 when Ocean Grove was founded by a group of Methodist preachers. In 1870 he was named President of the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association and he kept that position until he died. He was a much beloved religious leader who led the development of Ocean Grove to the point where huge crowds would come in the summers. Thanks to him, Ocean Grove today is the longest active Camp Meeting in the United States.
In his latter years, the religious leaders in the Grove became concerned about increased secularism. Stokes noted that with the increased prosperity of the Camp Meeting attendees, more and more activities were focused on pleasure rather than religion. But Stokes continued his hard work in promoting the Camp Meeting religious life including services on the beach attended by thousands and sacred music in the Tabernacle.
He never finished his autobiography, so the last chapter was written by his friend and colleague Rev. Dr. Ballard who concluded by saying, “Whatever may come in the future–however much the forms and customs may change as they have already changed—the names of Ellwood H. Stokes and Ocean Grove will stand together while time has a history or eternity a record.*”
MOLLY O’DAY
2021; “Changes in the Grove? We’re always traveling that highway home.”—PG
The Great Auditorium of Ocean Grove. Does this look like a town in need of a special redevelopment zone? Paul Goldfinger photograph. Click to enlarge.
NOTE: 9/15/24. We received a special delivery letter today from the OGNED lawyers advising us that we could attend a special hearing later this month to put the last nails into the coffin of Ocean Grove’s beautiful North End.
The meeting will provide final approvals for certain NJDEP and HPC requirements. We won’t attend because the Blogfinger team tried for years to put a stop to this travesty, but we failed to arouse an energetic opposition among any Grover activists and organizations.
Special thanks to Kevin Chambers, Jack Bredin and Charles Layton of the Blogfinger team. The BF article below, from 2019, is just one of many, many which railed against the North End Redevelopment Plan.
Without a doubt, Blogfinger published more articles in opposition than any other media source.
By Paul Goldfinger, MD, Editor, Blogfinger.net:
The documentation below is from the “NJ Statutes for Counties and Municipalities,” section 40A:12A-5: Determination of need for redevelopment:
2019 in Blogfinger.net:
As many of you know, the way that the CMA, WAVE, and Neptune Township were able to bury the single family zoning for the North End of Ocean Grove was to fraudulently declare the property an “area in need of redevelopment.”
That is how they justified turning that property into a commercial mixed-use zone. That is how they were able to grant permission for condominiums, an underground garage, a hotel, retail, and restaurants. Those plans contain nothing that is cultural, or beautiful, or in harmony with the environment or the wishes of those who actually live in the Grove.
All of this is contrary to the goals of Ocean Grove’s Master Plan which emphasized the residential /historic nature of the town.
Currently the latest consortium of big shots in town will push hard to begin a revised version of that project.
It’s not clear from the gobbledygook that they are putting out lately, that the changes which they are now happily promoting will avoid complications such as environmental damage, congestion, worsened parking distress, and further deterioration of quality of life for residents. Nor is it clear that those changes are legal and proper according to land use laws in New Jersey. We think not, on both counts.
If you are curious about what went down in 2008, read this to see what the State had in mind for “areas in need of redevelopment.”
40A:12A-5 Determination of need for redevelopment:
5.A delineated area may be determined to be in need of redevelopment if, after investigation, notice and hearing as provided in section 6 of P.L.1992, c.79 (C.40A:12A-6), the governing body of the municipality by resolution concludes that within the delineated area any of the following conditions is found:
a. The generality of buildings are substandard, unsafe, unsanitary, dilapidated, or obsolescent, or possess any of such characteristics, or are so lacking in light, air, or space, as to be conducive to unwholesome living or working conditions.
b. The discontinuance of the use of buildings previously used for commercial, manufacturing, or industrial purposes; the abandonment of such buildings; or the same being allowed to fall into so great a state of disrepair as to be untenable.
c. Land that is owned by the municipality, the county, a local housing authority, redevelopment agency or redevelopment entity, or unimproved vacant land that has remained so for a period of ten years prior to adoption of the resolution, and that by reason of its location, remoteness, lack of means of access to developed sections or portions of the municipality, or topography, or nature of the soil, is not likely to be developed through the instrumentality of private capital.
d. Areas with buildings or improvements which, by reason of dilapidation, obsolescence, overcrowding, faulty arrangement or design, lack of ventilation, light and sanitary facilities, excessive land coverage, deleterious land use or obsolete layout, or any combination of these or other factors, are detrimental to the safety, health, morals, or welfare of the community.
e. A growing lack or total lack of proper utilization of areas caused by the condition of the title, diverse ownership of the real property therein or other conditions, resulting in a stagnant or not fully productive condition of land potentially useful and valuable for contributing to and serving the public health, safety and welfare.
f. Areas, in excess of five contiguous acres, whereon buildings or improvements have been destroyed, consumed by fire, demolished or altered by the action of storm, fire, cyclone, tornado, earthquake or other casualty in such a way that the aggregate assessed value of the area has been materially depreciated.
g. In any municipality in which an enterprise zone has been designated pursuant to the “New Jersey Urban Enterprise Zones Act,” P.L.1983, c.303 (C.52:27H-60 et seq.) etc.
h. The designation of the delineated area is consistent with smart growth planning principles adopted pursuant to law or regulation.
L.1992,c.79,s.5; amended 2003, c.125, s.3.
SIMON AND GARFUNKEL: “So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright.”
“So long, Frank Lloyd Wright
I can’t believe your song is gone so soon
I barely learned the tune
So soon
So soon.”
So many voices over the years have performed at the Great Auditorium. On August 12, 1908, Ocean Grove welcomed a performance of an American operatic contralto star named Louise Homer. She had an active international career in concert halls and opera houses from 1895 until her retirement in 1932. She was also a member of the Metropolitan Opera in the years 1900-1919. I put together the attachment above that has a photo of her plus various priced tickets.
Wonder if she sung a short tune at Days afterwards?
From Rich Amole, Blogfinger staff.
Editor’s note: During the years of Ocean Grove’s famed music director Tali Esen Morgan, many great names appeared in the Great Auditorium. He built a grand house on Abbott Avenue in 1906, and around 1910, he entertained Enrico Caruso who put on a bit of a concert in Morgan’s front parlor. We wrote about that house and about that impromptu concert. Here is the link:
It’s interesting that Rich Amole sent us these tickets which provide for seating in the gallery and the main floor. Curiously, the brochure above refers to the “Grand Auditorium.” That must have been a goofy misunderstanding, because the Auditorium, which was built in 1894, was just called the “Auditorium” at first and for many years. Then a big sign on the roof said “Ocean Grove Auditorium,” and it remained up there until it was falling apart and was removed, but not replaced, in 1979.
According to Wayne T. Bell, Jr, Cindy L. Bell, and Darrell A. Dufresne, authors of The Great Auditorium—Ocean Grove’s Architectural Treasure (2012,) “It took awhile” for the name “Great Auditorium” to take hold. The authors reviewed many sources dating back over 100 years to find out that it was in recent times, perhaps the 1970’s, that the name “Great Auditorium” became official, especially after the PR people got hold of it.
As for Louise Homer, she was a huge star in the opera world, making her debut at the Met. in 1900, performing in Aida. For 19 consecutive seasons she played the “Met” opposite Caruso and other greats of the Metropolitan Opera in New York.
Here is an old recording of Louise Homer singing with Enrico Caruso and Marcel Journet in the opera Samson et Dalila. The year was around 1920. They are singing in French about celebrating a victory. I hope it’s not the scene where she cuts off his hair—–so sad; I hate that part. Rich Amole owns these tickets now, having acquired them on Ebay from some Grovers, but if he thinks he can go to the concert, sorry Rich, but you are a little late. —-Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger.
By Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger. 2015 Re-post
Around 1912 Teddy Roosevelt was a hero in Ocean Grove. He had visited the Grove in 1899 and 1905. “He epitomized the ideal of muscular Christianity….someone who became a skilled leader and protector of the nation.” * As President he spoke in the Great Auditorium, and he appeared on parade with his Rough Riders on the Ocean Pathway.
There was a major youth movement in the Grove back then including a militaristic version for boys called the Young Rough Riders. Boys in the Grove received militaristic training from the age of eight.
Regarding the photograph above, Troy Messenger *said, “A boy innocently playing soldier on the beach actually represented an important performance of gender identity within the perfectionism of Ocean Grove.”
Many of those boys went on to serve in the US Army during WW I.
* From Troy Messenger’s book “Holy Leisure: Recreation and Religion in God’s Square Mile.” University of Minnesota Press, 1999.
This was originally posted in June, 2015 on BF. But each year we pay attention to girls in their summer clothes. It is a tradition for our seashore community and for Blogfinger.net.
The June day in 2015 (below) started out rainy and chilly, but later in the day it became Sunny and Cher; it warmed up a bit, but it was still windy.
I went on the boardwalk and saw lifeguards at their stations. A green flag was flying along with “Old Glory.” But no one was swimming. In fact no one was in the water.
I walked up to one of the lifeguard stands and joked with the guards who stayed at their post, like soldiers guarding a “no-man’s land.” An older guard, “Cowboy Dave” was sitting in the rescue boat, 10 gallon hat on and blue sunglasses, but he was facing the water. He is either the first or the last in the lifeboat. He said that he is from OG and that this is his 16th summer as a lifeguard. He reminds me of Robert Duvall smelling napalm in the morning. (Apocalypse Now)
I asked him if he saw any bathing beauties go by, because all that was out there was the surf. He pointed to some young ladies about 100 yards away who were the only ones on the beach, to the north. Clearly this was not a “no-woman’s land.”
They wore some pretty small bathing suits, so it seemed like a good public interest news photo- op for Blogfinger.
When I walked to their location, it seemed like I should ask them why they are in Ocean Grove on such a bleak day. I was thinking that they looked like they should be in Asbury Park. I did not comment on their attire, but you can’t help but notice that this is much different than 1880.
As it turns out, they are coeds who are camping at Allaire State Park where they are renting a yurt. They were having a great time just being together and laughing and talking and telling yurt jokes. They said that they preferred Ocean Grove’s beach to any others. One of them had come to OG as a child.
They especially singled out Days Ice Cream and the summer tents as favorite spots. I only had one BF card which I gave them to photograph and share.
I said goodbye and walked back to the lifeguards offering to sell them the names of the young ladies. They seemed interested, but ultimately I suggested that they get the names themselves.
So who says that we live in Ocean Grave? It’s time to bury that nickname.
F.W. Beers map dated 1873, 4 years after OG founding. From the Blogfinger.net archives. Click to enlarge. Scanned from the original map.
By Paul Goldfinger, MD. Editor, Blogfinger.net
This F.W. Beer’s map segment is dated 1873. It is from an atlas of Monmouth County and it covers parts of Ocean and Shrewsbury Townships. The scale is 160 rods to the inch. How many of you are interested in the history and geography of this area? Let’s all send in comments based on your observations of this map or related bits of history that you know.. Please keep it brief, and we can form a sort of mosaic of information to go with the map.
Here is a useful tool: Click on the image, and the map gets a bit bigger. But then, run your cursor over the map and you will see a plus sign. Put that over an area of interest and click again. —P.G.
HISTORICAL COMMITTEE FINDINGS: (send your observations by commenting below or email to blogfinger@verizon.net and we will add your opinion to the list below.)
1. Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger: In 1873, Ocean Grove was part of Ocean Township. Note that there is no Avon, Bradley Beach, Spring Lake or Neptune. Deal Lake is called Boyleston Great Pond, and there is no Allenhurst. Instead, north of Boyleston Pond, there is the Allen House owned by A. Allen.
2. Lee Morgan: Paul, Just to the south of Greens Pond, around where Deal or Long Branch would be today, is a reference to US Grant. Did he live or vacation at that spot??Lee
3. BeZee: Well, look at Wesley Lake! Washed by the ocean, fed by a freshwater stream that ran all the way out to Whitesville, (later called Wesley Brook). People actually used to drink the water. Nice while it lasted. But the ocean outlet was plugged by the CMA early on to provide a reliable source of aquatic recreation. Then the area surrounding the brook became populated by a “careless population” that used it to dispose of all sorts of crap (literally). Which created a “disgusting” situation that the town fathers thought to address by means of a “catch basin” at the head of the Lake. Not sure that ever happened. But a constant source of complaints in the OG Annual Reports 1900-1910 or so. So when there are complaints about the condition of the Lake now, just know that it used to be worse…
4. Paul @Blogfinger: Lee. I know that a number of US Presidents did visit Long Branch. They have the 7 Presidents Park there today, and one of those 7 who visited there was Grant. Grant also visited Ocean Grove. He parked his horse outside the gates and walked over to drink tea at a woman’s house on Wesley Lake. She supposedly was his sister.
5. NJ Commenter: To Lee Morgan: US Grant owned a cottage at 995 Ocean Ave in the Elberon section of Long Branch. It was the summer White House from 1869 to 1876. The cottage was demolished in 1963; it stood on the property now adjacent to the Stella Maris Retreat House. There are several photos available online with President and Mrs. Grant relaxing on their porch with family and friends.
6. Focused: The only significant interesting thing about this map is the center of Ocean Grove where a huge pile of earth that has never been dealt with still divides a number of east and west running streets in the Grove. So those streets ended up having different names depending on which side of this pile of earth you lived on.
7. Paul @Blogfinger: Notice the unnamed north-south roadway to the immediate west of OG. Undoubtedly that became Rt. 71 later. The houses out there belonged to pre-existing families having nothing to do with the Camp Meeting, including names like White, Bennet, Youman. The Bennet name is all over that area. Some of those families probably sold land to the OGCMA as they bought up quite a few small properties in 1869 to stitch together the town of Ocean Grove.
Note the lumber yard and the toll house (maybe where the cookies were first baked.),
Also, at the north end of Asbury Park is a lake (probably Sunset Lake) with a road running west to Wegmans featuring Mallomars on sale every September—not shown on this map.
8 Wisher: It is interesting how Whitesville disappeared, when it was so prominent on the map. Every time I drive down Neptune Avenue and pass that forest area to the right next to Shop Rite, I wonder what artifacts might be there. I think the town may have stretched from The Shop Rite area to the circle/roundabout on 35.
Please keep the history comments coming in. The music will post below
When I first took an interest in the history of Ocean Grove, I went to the Camp Meeting Association to interview their historian. Much to my surprise, this historic institution had no such official who could be a spokesman regarding their history.
Instead I was informed that the Historical Society of Ocean Grove served in that capacity. To be honest, I found that to be strange and essentially untrue.
As a result, no one has assiduously taken on that responsibility. And as a result, there are failures in the re-telling, such as we saw recently in trying to find the correct name for “the fountain” in Founders Park.
Others have tried to step into the void such as authors Ted Bell, Ted David, and Paul Goldfinger who have written about it.
In 1939, at the time of the Grove’s 70th anniversary, a book was published called “History of Ocean Grove” compiled by the Ocean Grove Times “in cooperation with the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association.” The writing was credited to Mr. and Mrs. Richard F. Gibbons.
At various times in the past, as recently as 1985, the subject of secession from Neptune Township by the town of Ocean Grove has come up.
And the records show that such an event actually happened for one year in 1920. Here (below) is the verbatim chapter from the 1939 Gibbons’ book called “The Borough of Ocean Grove.” It is likely that the authors were present in 1920 when this history was being made.
Part I:
Probably the greatest victory won by the proponents of a change in Ocean Grove came in 1920 when the Legislature approved the Borough Bill.
The Camp Meeting Association had gone along with the backers of the bill freely demonstrating the spirit of good will existing between the board and many of the town’s leading citizens.
The newly-organized Civic Betterment League established amicable relations with the Camp Meeting Association, and a joint conference was held at the Chalfonte Hotel, Atlantic City.
A joint committee was named to draft a bill for the Borough of Ocean Grove, the group consisting of Governor Stokes, Judge Harold B. Wells, and Counsellor W. Holt Apgar, for the Association, and Robert M. Watt, Stephen D. Wooley, and Counsellor Richard W. Stout for the Civic League. Mr. Stout, then Assemblyman from Monmouth County, agreed to sponsor the bill in the Legislature.
After several meetings of the Joint Committee, the bill was prepared, approved by both the Camp Meeting Association and the Civic Betterment League, and introduced by Assemblyman Stout.
The Ocean Grove Borough Bill passed the Assembly 38-2, and the State Senate, 15-0, and was duly signed by Governor Edward I. Edwards.
Immediately after the passage of the bill, an organization was formed, headed by Dr. Charles J Massinger, William S. Hopper, Andrew T. VanCleve, and William E. Bunn, which opposed the formation of a borough. Mass meetings were held by both sides, pamphlets and other literature were circulated among the citizens, and great enthusiasm and bitterness prevailed.
At the referendum, provided for in the bill, its adoption was overwhelmingly voted for. After the referendum a primary was held in the Association Hall with some five hundred present (Incidentally Woman’s Suffrage had not been ratified and only men voted,) at which candidates for the various borough offices were nominated.
Subsequently, at a special election, Robert M. Watt was elected Mayor, and T. Nelson Lillagore, George C. Pridham, Rev. Thomas J.J. Wright, Dr. William A. Robinson and William E. Carpenter were elected members of the Council; Harry G. Shreve, Assessor; and Joseph Rainear, Collector. These men were re-elected at the regular election, with the exception of William E. Carpenter, who declined to be a candidate , and Lot R. Ward, Sr, was elected in his stead.
NOTE On August 11, 1920, in a brief article in the New York Times (dateline August 10, 1920) the headline read: “Ocean Grove Elects First Mayor.” The dateline says Ocean Grove, NJ: “Robert M Watt is the first Mayor of Ocean Grove Borough. He was elected today with six Councilmen.”
The organization meeting of the Mayor and Council was held in the social parlors of the Eagle Hook and Ladder Company. Frederick A. Smith, President of the company and on behalf of the company, presented the Mayor with an engraved gavel and pedestal. At the meeting Stephen d. Wooley was elected President of the Council, John E. Quinn was appointed Clerk and Richard W. Stout, Counsel, and the various committees were appointed. An emergency note for $20,000 was authorized and later discounted at the Ocean Grove National Bank.
On January 14, 1921, the Mayor and Council adopted an annual budget totaling $60,390.00.
Over the next year, a great battle developed over the new Borough, and the “rise and fall of the Borough” ensued. Gibbons called it “The Famous Borough Fight.”
Followup the next year. (1921). The CMA retracted its support for the Borough of OG, and then, a few court battles later, the Borough of Ocean Grove Act was found to be unconstitutional, and governance was returned to the CMA.
In 1985 there was another battle looking to secede, but it was defeated. Frank Pallone (our congressman then and now) tried to help the Grovers who were in the fight.
This photograph (with permission) is the first in Ted Bell’s ” Images of America: Ocean Grove.” CLICK TO ENLARGE
BLOGFINGER RE-RUN FROM 2010. It’s important that more people other than tourists learn OG history. This timeline gives some perspective for new Grovers and others who ought to educate themselves to this sequence of events. Thus we periodically re-post this timeline.
By Paul Goldfinger, MD, Editor @Blogfinger.net.
Ocean Grove’s history is a fascinating saga about how a Methodist summer community founded in 1869 eventually evolved into a historic and diverse year-round tourist town while preserving its religious and architectural characteristics.
Sure it’s about the Camp Meeting Association (CMA), the Great Auditorium, the tents, and the famous religious figures who took center stage since the founding, but there is so much more to tell, particularly about the town’s secular history including: its governance; the multiple attempts to secede from Neptune; the successful but temporary creation of an independent secular Borough of Ocean Grove in 1920; opening of the gates in 1979; loss of governance by the CMA in 1980; the decline of the “blue laws”; the extraordinary successes of the Ocean Grove Homeowner’s Association as they transform OG from shabbiness to renaissance by the 1990’s; the remarkable demographic changes of the 1990’s including the growth of the gay community, the amazing musical heritage, the fights over taxes, and there is so much more.
The Historical Society of Ocean Grove has offered wonderful exhibits about such topics as the women’s suffrage movement and the African-American “history trail” here, and we at Blogfinger have run two pieces about John Phillip Sousa in Ocean Grove as well as the account of Paul Robeson’s 1925 concert in the Great Auditorium.
We plan to continue our series of articles on some of the less well known accounts in Ocean Grove’s history, especially focusing on secular events. We will begin the process of digging into Ocean Grove’s fascinating past with a time-line. It’s important for Grovers to know this history. You may be surprised by some of the items below:
1869: Ocean Grove is founded by the Rev. William Osborne and his colleagues. They form the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association of the Methodist Episcopal Church (CMA) and begin purchasing land. The town is part of Ocean Township. The CMA’s goal is to provide and maintain a Christian seaside resort.
1870: The New Jersey Legislature grants a charter to CMA which allows them to govern in Ocean Grove. They can make ordinances, establish a police department and a court of law, and administer all infrastructure and services including schools, sanitation and library.
The town is designed “from scratch,” becoming one of the first planned communities in the US. The first lots are “sold” (i.e. leased) from the CMA which retains ownership of all the land. The first cottage is built in 1870.
1872: Over 300 cottages have been built.
1875: Rev Adam Wallace founds the Ocean Grove Record, the town’s first newspaper. Rev. E. H. Stokes, the first CMA President says, regarding the gate closure on Sunday, that “there is no human probability that these rules will ever be revoked.” The first train from New York arrives in OG. People begin to stay year round.
1879: The NJ Legislature creates Neptune Township by carving it out of Ocean Township and incorporates Ocean Grove’s boundaries as part of Neptune. Ocean Grove CMA and lot/home owners pay taxes to Neptune. Leaseholders (“lessees”) must continue to pay “ground rent” to the CMA.
The CMA refuses all services from Neptune and continues to function as the “governing authority,” maintaining rigid control in OG. Physical isolation within its boundaries, “blue laws,” land ownership, and a homogeneous population of Methodists contribute to the sustained CMA rule. Ocean Grove is, in practice, a theocracy. But that will become a problem for them over 100 years later.
1897: The first mention of tax discontentment appears as CMA President Bishop Fitzgerald speaks publicly about Neptune’s tax bill and says, “Of the discrimination against us in the matter of taxation does not as yet seem to admit of remedy.”
1898: Ocean Grove’s “lessees,” who pay property taxes to Neptune Township, want the CMA to pay the land taxes to Neptune. A suit is brought by the homeowners, but in 1900 the NJ Supreme Court sides with the CMA.
1912: Ocean Grove’s citizens want to participate in the town’s governance, so they elect a Board of Representative Lessees to join with the CMA in managing the town’s affairs. There was unrest, with many citizens disliking this peculiar arrangement and wanting Ocean Grove to be a regular town with an elected secular government.
1915: the Ocean Grove Taxpayers and Protective League is formed.
1918: CMA has financial problems and asks Neptune to take over police, garbage and sanitation functions. Neptune refuses.
1920. The Lessee Board is dissolved, and the Civic Betterment League is formed. Its goal is the creation of an independent Ocean Grove Borough. The CMA supports the idea, and the NJ Legislature passes an Ocean Grove Borough bill which creates an incorporated borough, apart from Neptune. Governor Edwards signs it into law, a referendum in town receives wide support, and local elections are held.
The new Borough of Ocean Grove operates for one year, but they retain the CMA “blue laws”. Opponents in town want things the old way and they form the “Lessees Association” They sue in State Supreme Court.
1921: The NJ Court of Errors and Appeals finds the Borough bill to be unconstitutional, because the Borough has allowed religious ordinances to stand. The Borough bill might have been upheld if the “blue laws” were discarded, but the CMA and its supporters refuse. The Borough is dissolved, and governance goes back to Neptune and the CMA. This was not the first attempt to gain secular control of OG, but this one came the closest.
1923: A bill to make Ocean Grove a separate tax district with its own tax rates gets “lost in the legislature.”
1924: A big battle ensues as Neptune tries to substantially increase the CMA’s taxes, including high taxes on the beach, Auditorium, streets, sewers, etc. CMA wins in 1925 at the NJ Tax Board, and most of their holdings are not taxed.
1925-1960: The town is a popular summer resort and is known internationally. Huge crowds visit along with US Presidents and many celebrities. As for the ongoing arguments in Ocean Grove, the historian Gibbon says, in 1939, “Many times residents and land lessees of the town have voiced their objection to the local rules, to the tax situation or to the form of government, especially from 1900-1925, and there have been many court fights.”
For the most part, things stay the same.
1960-1980: Ocean Grove declines, along with much of the Jersey shore. (See below)
1975: A group of dedicated citizens led by Mr. Ted Bell and his colleagues obtain approval for OG’s designation as a State and National historic district. It is a complicated process. Formation of Board of Architectural Review (BAR) happens in 1984. (Later re-named the Historic Preservation Commission—HPC.)
1975: A newspaper service sues over Sunday’s gate closures, which had been permitted by town ordinance. The NJ Supreme Court strikes down the ordinance on grounds that it violates the first amendment to the Constitution (freedom of the press). The gates are opened for the news service only, but the CMA is allowed to continue its theocratic governance of Ocean Grove and the enforcement of other “blue laws”. Many people in Ocean Grove view the gates’ opening as an unhappy event.
1977: A lawsuit stemming from a drunk-driving conviction challenges the authority of Ocean Grove’s municipal court. The NJ Supreme Court widens the scope of the case and decides in June, 1979 that CMA governance in Ocean Grove is in violation of the Constitutional separation of church and state. Appeals are filed. This marks the beginning of the end for CMA governance in OG.
1980: The US Supreme Court would not hear the appeal, so governance of OG is transferred from the CMA to Neptune Township. Neptune eventually eliminates most of the blue laws. Only the Sunday morning beach closure and the ban on alcohol sales remain.
1980’s: By the 1980’s, the town is characterized by an overall “decrepitude,” including deterioration of buildings, declining tourism, crime, and a growing poor elderly population. (2) Deinstitutionalized mental patients are housed in empty old hotels and rooming houses in Ocean Grove. The town becomes a “psychiatric ghetto” (NY Times, October 1988), and, by the 1980’s, 10% of the town’s population are mental cases who are not receiving appropriate services and are sometimes abused by landlords. The prognosis for Ocean Grove is dire.
During this period, the Ocean Grove Homeowner’s Association (OGHOA) develops as a political and activist force that successfully begins the process of converting the town from decay to renaissance. (2f)
1990’s: OGHOA, led by Mr. Herb Herbst, Fran Paladino and others, fight for fair treatment in the allotment of the mentally ill around the state. The group’s political contacts and influence are considerable. The process is complex and difficult, but the numbers of “de-institutionalized” in OG drops considerably.
The group also saw to the closing of many substandard boarding and rooming houses. The HOA presents Neptune with a “master plan” to protect the historic nature of OG and to rezone for the promotion of single family houses. OGHOA promotes secular tourism while working with CMA to increase religious tourism. New people come into town to buy homes and invest in businesses.
1995:
The historic Neptune High School is saved from becoming low income housing by a group of Ocean Grove homeowners led by Mr. Herb Herbst and with the assistance of State Senator Joseph Palaia and others. (3, 4) The Jersey Shore Arts Center is owned and run today by a nonprofit tax exempt organization: The Ocean Grove Historic Preservation Society.
2000: Secular goals achieved as of 2000: increased property values, increased upgrading of houses, improved relations with Neptune, improved downtown with quaint shops, art galleries, cafes, etc., reduced crime, increased tourism, reduced de-institutionalized patients, demographic changes (increased gays, empty nesters, retirees, professionals, academics, young artists, and middle class families).
2005: House prices peak.
2007: New topics emerge: North End development, Ocean Pavilion dispute (gays vs. CMA), evolving demographics including more second home purchases, significant increases in property taxes, parking problems, Asbury Park development stalls, and home prices decline.
2009: Ocean Grove blog is founded (Blogfinger.net) by Paul Goldfinger, MD to help fill in the gap created when the OG newspaper closed. It offered a place to voice opinions about Ocean Grove’s many ongoing issues.
October 29, 2012. super-storm Sandy hits the Jersey Shore and destroys the Ocean Grove beachfront, part of the Great Auditorium roof, and floods the south side of town.
2009-2022:Blogfinger documents ongoing issues in town. Use the search engine on top right.
SAM AND DAVE:
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
1. R. Gibbons, History of Ocean Grove: 1869-1939 (Ocean Grove Times, 1939)
2. K. Schmelzkopf, Landscape, ideology, and religion: a geography of Ocean Grove, New Jersey, Journal of Historical Geography, 28, 4 (2002) 589-608
3. Kevin Chambers, Herb Herbst, and Wayne T. Bell, personal communication,( 2008)
