Point Pleasant Volume III

By Jerry A. Wooley

Point Pleasant Volume I and Volume II have captivated audiences, and now, in this new addition to the Images of America series, author Jerry Woolley offers us a third volume of images to help us connect with our past. In Point Pleasant Volume III, we are invited to take a stroll down memory lane and see the area's residents at work and at play, boating and fishing, and simply relaxing on the beach. Also featured within these pages are a variety of snapshots of the places and events that have given this community its Old World familiarity. Its no wonder that Point Pleasant and Point Pleasant Beach have been popular tourist destinations for more than two centuries.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Release date: Sep 18, 2012
• ISBN: 9781439626764

Jerry A. Wooley

Author Jerry Woolley, a life-long resident of Point Pleasant Beach, has carefully selected over 200 images from his archive of over 1,000 photographs to bring us this unique collection. Woolley�s commitment to the documentation of local history is outstanding, and his intimate look at these spirited communities will delight readers of all ages.

Book preview

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INTRODUCTION

It is hard to believe that this third volume about the history of the Point Pleasant area has been published. Yet, it is not surprising. There is so much history and so many stories to be told about Point Pleasant that it could fill a countless number of volumes.

The first white men to observe the beaches of Point Pleasant were most likely the crew of the Half Moon, an Amsterdam vessel that crossed the Atlantic and explored the East Coast of the United States in 1609. Under the leadership of Henry Hudson, crewman Robert Juet kept a detailed journal of the voyage, describing the entire coastline that was observed and visited by the Half Moon. The Point Pleasant coastline would have appeared as an unbroken line of dunes 10 to 20 feet high. These dunes were interrupted by the Manasquan Inlet, which probably existed somewhere along the present Manasquan beachfront.

This paradise, previously known only to local Native Americans, was soon to be changed forever. By the 1680s the land, now encompassing Point Pleasant Beach, was parceled out by the East Jersey Proprietors to such individuals as Richard Hartshorne, William Lawrence, John West, John Hans, and Ephram Allen. Most of these individuals never even visited this area, which was eventually passed on or sold to the early settlers of Point Pleasant during the 1700s.

We can only imagine what the area was like when the first Royal Surveyors trudged through the salt marshes along the Manasquan River and at the head of Barnegat Bay; or when they looked out over the Atlantic Ocean from atop the beachfront dune line; or when they ran their measuring chains through the cedar and pine groves that bordered the grassy meadows.

Not until the 1880s did photographs begin to transform the images of early Point Pleasant into reality. While photographs of Point Pleasant probably exist before the 1880s, so far they have been elusive.

As stated in the Introduction to Point Pleasant Vol. I, the name Point Pleasant refers to the boroughs of Point Pleasant and Point Pleasant Beach as a whole, while Point Pleasant Beach and Point Pleasant Borough refer to the individual communities.

I would gratefully like to acknowledge the people and organizations that have contributed images, information, stories, and criticism to these volumes. I am especially grateful for the stories and inspiration I received over the years from my late grandmother, Maude Young, who witnessed and knew firsthand the events and people that shaped the history of Point Pleasant and Point Pleasant Beach during the 20th century. Also at the top of my thank you list is my wife, Lee, and our daughter Katie, for being patient while our lives were occasionally put on hold. Perspective can sometimes be hazy when you are immersed in putting together the giant jigsaw puzzle known as local history.

In no particular order, I would also like to thank the following: my parents, Stanley and Shirley Woolley, for guiding me in the right direction; my brother, Scott Woolley; the Point Pleasant Historical Society, especially Museum Curator Kathy Heim; Tom Williams; Dick Strickler; Corinne Lill and the staff of the Ocean County Historical Society; the Squan Village Historical Society, especially Wesley Banse and George Williams; Librarian Terry Albert of the Point Pleasant Beach Library and the Beach Library Board of Trustees; Librarian Barbara Kaden of the Point Pleasant Borough Library and the Friends of the Point Pleasant Library; Point Pleasant Beach Borough Clerk Barbara Scharmann and Borough Administrator Bob Meany; the staff at Hall Color Labs in Long Branch; Dotti Daly of the Point Pleasant Beach Chamber of Commerce; Russell Mickle of Point Pleasant Beach Fire Company No. 2; Tom Vogel of Ocean Fire Company No. 1; Chris Meyer of Shore Antique Center; Borough Engineer John Walsh; Jerry Colagiovanni of Jenkinson’s Pavilion; Barry Lubin of Bordens; Peter Brookes of Fables; and St. Peter’s Church.

Thanks also go to Dennis and Andrea Rittenhouse, Bob Jahn, Jay Newcomb, Emery Wheeler, Dan DiCorcia, Wayne Scholl, Betty Van Horn, Alice Lane, Jim and Pat Malone, Jan Newman, Francis Tomaino, George Morris, the late Arthur Johnson and his wife, Jean, Frank Bryant, Betsy LeChard, Micheal Loughran, Sean and Nancy Fleming, Emidio Caruso Jr., Ben Goble, the late Antoinette Downey Mayer, Nancy Skinner, Dick LaBonte, Greg Hoffman, Sandy Pasola, David Oxenford, Dr. Claribel Young, Jill Lockwood Bennett, Tom Cherry, and Skeeter O’Dell.

To all those above and anyone I may have inadvertently omitted, I am deeply grateful.

—Jerry A. Woolley

February 1999

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WELCOME TO POINT PLEASANT