Ocean Grove, New Jersey
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| Ocean Grove, New Jersey | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | New Jersey |
| County | Monmouth |
| Area | |
| - Total | 0.4 sq mi (1.0 km²) |
| - Land | 0.4 sq mi (0.9 km²) |
| - Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.1 km²) |
| Elevation | 16 ft (5 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 4,256 |
| - Density | 11,956.5/sq mi (4,616.4/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 07756 |
| Area code(s) | 732 |
| FIPS code | 34-54480[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0878939[2] |
Ocean Grove is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Neptune Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey. It is located on the Atlantic Ocean Jersey Shore, between Asbury Park to the north and Bradley Beach to the south. It is particularly noted for its abundant Victorian homes and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Ocean Grove was founded in 1869 as an outgrowth of the camp meeting movement in the United States, when a group of Methodist clergymen, led by William B. Osborn and Ellwood H. Stokes, formed the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association to develop and operate a summer camp meeting site on the New Jersey seashore.[3] The community's land is owned by the camp meeting association and leased to individual homeowners and businesses. Ocean Grove remains the longest-active camp meeting site in the United States.[4]
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[edit] Geography
Ocean Grove is located at (40.211982, -74.009169)[5].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 1.0 km² (0.4 mi²). 0.9 km² (0.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (10.00%) is water.
Frequent rail passenger service to New York City is provided by New Jersey Transit from nearby Asbury Park station. The nearest airport having scheduled commercial airline service is Newark Liberty International Airport, 45 miles north, although Monmouth Executive Airport for general aviation airplanes is just 6 miles distant.
Interstate 195 provides highway access to Ocean Grove from the New Jersey Turnpike, Philadelphia, and points west. The nearby Garden State Parkway connects Ocean Grove with points north and south, such as New York City and Atlantic City.
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1990 | 4,818 |
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| 2000 | 4,256 | -11.7% | |
| source: [6] | |||
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 4,256 people, 2,331 households, and 785 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 4,564.6/km² (11,956.5/mi²). There were 3,156 housing units at an average density of 3,384.8/km² (8,866.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 93.14% White, 3.95% African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.96% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.92% from other races, and 0.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.62% of the population.
There were 2,331 households out of which 10.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 23.6% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 66.3% were non-families. 56.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.67 and the average family size was 2.59.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 9.9% under the age of 18, 5.8% from 18 to 24, 33.5% from 25 to 44, 26.4% from 45 to 64, and 24.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 82.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.1 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $31,935, and the median income for a family was $58,583. Males had a median income of $38,389 versus $31,886 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $26,232. About 5.1% of families and 13.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.0% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.
However, as Ocean Grove is primarily a non-residential summer community, many residences are unoccupied during the winter months. Consequently, these statistics may not be representative of the actual population during the Summer.
[edit] Governance
The desire to develop a Christian seaside community for summer worship and relaxation led William B. Osborn (1832–1902), a leader of the camp meeting movement in mid-19th century America, to select the site of present-day Ocean Grove for its wooded, mosquito-free location.[3] Ellwood H. Stokes (October 10, 1815–July 16, 1895), a Methodist minister from Philadelphia, and others joined together to purchase a square mile of land fronting on the Atlantic Ocean. A state charter was issued to the newly formed Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association on March 3, 1870, granting the 26 trustees (13 ministers and 13 lay persons) the authority to purchase and hold the one square mile of real estate comprising Ocean Grove, and to construct and maintain all necessary works to supply the town with utilities and other municipal services, including law enforcement.[3]
Later, efforts to establish a separate borough of Ocean Grove were attempted many times. Ocean Grove was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 5, 1920, from portions of Neptune Township, but the New Jersey Court of Errors and Appeals ruled the municipality unconstitutional on May 12, 1921, and the borough was dissolved as of June 16, 1921.[7]
Although Ocean Grove reverted back as part of Neptune Township with the court's decision of 1921, the Camp Meeting Association continued to exercise local ordinance enforcement powers until 1981, when a newspaper deliverer successfully sued to end the resort's blue law banning Sunday vehicular traffic and requiring it to disband its police force and "municipal" court.[8] The Camp Meeting still owns all the land in town and leases it to homeowners and businesses for 99-year renewable terms.[3] The Camp Meeting Association currently keeps its beach closed on Sunday mornings between 8:30 am and 12:30 pm and Ocean Grove is still "dry", that is, the sale of all alcoholic beverages is prohibited.
[edit] History
On July 31, 1869, Reverend William B. Osborn, Reverend Ellwood H. Stokes, and other Methodist ministers camped at a shaded, well-drained spot on New Jersey's seashore and decided to establish a permanent Christian camp meeting community called "Ocean Grove."[9]
Drawing from the major population centers of New York City and Philadelphia, Ocean Grove became a popular destination during the growth of the camp meeting movement in post-Civil War America. Tents and an open-air wooden shelter, or "tabernacle", were erected in the 1870s, for the trainloads of visitors arriving by the New York and Long Branch Railroad after 1875. In 1877 alone, 710,000 railroad tickets were sold for the Ocean Grove-Asbury Park train station.[3] A well was dug in the summer of 1870 near the site of the first tabernacle to provide fresh water (the "Beersheba" well, named from a well in Israel mentioned in scripture, is still in existence).[3] A second, larger tabernacle was built in the 1880s and permanent structures began to be constructed. Streets were paved and some were given Biblical names, such as "Pilgrim Pathway" and "Mt. Tabor Way".
As Ocean Grove drew more and more visitors, the second tabernacle was also outgrown, and construction of the present Great Auditorium was completed in 1894. Originally designed to accommodate crowds of as many as 10,000 people, the subsequent installation of theater-style cushioned seating in many sections reduced seating capacity to about 6,000. Regardless, it remains Ocean Grove's most prominent structure and the centerpiece of its summer programs (see more about the Auditorium further down the page).
Until Ocean Grove's municipal authority was folded into Neptune Township in 1981, it boasted a set of unique laws, including one that made it illegal on Sundays to have cars on the streets of Ocean Grove. This had a significant effect on the development of a close-knit community. People looking to get away for the weekend typically avoided the Grove (the beach was closed on Sunday, too). That meant the visitors were likely to be coming for a week-long visit or more. Most came to attend programs sponsored by the Camp Meeting.
President Ulysses S. Grant visited Ocean Grove during his time in office and made his last public appearance in this town. Other Presidents to speak on the grounds include James Garfield, William McKinley, Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and Richard Nixon. During the decades of the 1920s-1950s, Ocean Grove's population swelled during the summers with thousands of visitors each week. Heavyweight boxing champions James J. Corbett and Max Baer and department store magnate F.W. Woolworth were among the celebrities of the day who vacationed in Ocean Grove.[3]
During the 1960s–1980s, the town declined along with much of the New Jersey seashore, and was pejoratively called "Ocean Grave" due to the general air of decrepitude.[10]
In 1975, Ocean Grove was designated a State and National Historic District as a 19th century planned urban community. It has the greatest extent of Victorian and early-20th century architecture in the U.S.[3]
[edit] Today
Beginning in the 1990s and through 2006, Ocean Grove experienced a dramatic increase in property values and a considerable revival in the fortunes of the town, with the restoration of older hotel structures, many of which had deteriorated into Single Room Occupancy ("SRO") quarters. However, as David Willis of The Asbury Park Press, reported in a February 15, 2008 article “For the year, the median (home) sales price fell 1.5 percent in 2007...”. The article also quoted economist James Hughes, dean of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University, who stated that "The market was virtually flat," Hughes said. "It suggests that the market is far from rebounding, and it may signal that there is weakness ahead." [11]
As part of Ocean Grove's resurgence in recent years, a number of sidewalk cafés and shops along Main Avenue – the main business thoroughfare – now cater to visitors and seasonal residents. Plans were announced in 2006 for a major new hotel and condominium development on property which has been vacant since the 1970s, when the old "North End Hotel" – once Ocean Grove's largest – was damaged by fire and subsequently demolished in 1980. [12]. These plans have become controversial though, and in January, 2008, the Planning Board of Neptune stated the North End Redevelopment Proposal was "inconsistent with the town's Master Plan".[13]
[edit] The Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association
Since its founding, the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association's mission is to provide opportunities for spiritual birth, growth, and renewal in a Christian seaside setting. Its 2007 mission statement is:
"...rooted in its Methodist heritage, to provide opportunities for spiritual birth, growth and renewal through worship, education, cultural and recreational programs for persons of all ages in a Christian seaside setting."[14]
The Camp Meeting Association's current president is Scott Rasmussen.[4]
[edit] Programs
The Camp Meeting offers traditional and contemporary worship programs throughout the summer, for people of all ages.
Sunday worship services are held at 10:30am and 7:30pm in the Great Auditorium. These services have featured such celebrated preachers as Billy Graham, Norman Vincent Peale, Robert H. Schuller, Billy Sunday, Ralph W. Sockman, David H. C. Read, Tony Campolo, James A. Forbes, D. James Kennedy, Charles Stanley, William Jennings Bryan, Booker T. Washington, and British evangelist Rodney "Gipsy" Smith.[3] The music is led by a sizeable volunteer choir, accompanied by the world-renowned Hope-Jones organ (see section entitled "Great Auditorium"), and currently directed by conductor Jason C. Tramm. Current soloists are soprano Monica Ziglar, mezzo-soprano Elspeth Kincaid, bass-baritone Richard Zuch, and tenor/artist-in-residence Ronald Naldi. Additionally, for the past 53 years, the annual July Choir Festival has gathered thousands of church choir singers from all over the country to sing "to the glory of God."
The Grove also offers a contemporary worship service, "Pavilion Praise," in the beach's Boardwalk Pavilion each Sunday morning at 9 AM. The Bible Hour (scripture study, often led by the preacher at the previous Sunday's Auditorium worship service) is held each weekday morning at 9 in the Bishop-Janes Tabernacle adjacent to the Auditorium.[14]
Youth programs include music and dramatics at the Youth Temple, along with the weekday "Breakfast Club" for teens and "Riptide" for younger children. Bridgefest, a Saturday beach event in August, brings contemporary Christian music to young people and their families, promoted by New York-area radio station "The Bridge 89.7" (WRDR-FM).[15]
[edit] The Great Auditorium
| Camp Meeting Great Auditorium | |
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| U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
.jpg/235px-OGFeb2006_009_(Small3).jpg) |
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| Location: | Ocean Grove, New Jersey |
| Added to NRHP: | April 12, 1976 |
The Great Auditorium is mostly unchanged more than 110 years after being constructed on bridge-like iron trusses laid on stone foundations. The building still features lighting systems quite advanced for their time, such as rows of then-novel incandescent bulbs on the ceiling of varnished wood paneling. Also novel is a large American flag (c. 1916) covered with light bulbs that flash in an undulating manner.
Illuminated signs flanking the organ's pipework proclaim "Holiness to the Lord" and "So be ye holy," a reflection of the emphasis at camp meetings. Another reflection is the illuminated Memorial Cross, placed on the Auditorium's front facade at the end of World War II.[14] Facing the building is another historical reminder: 114 tents, which are occupied from May to September just as they have been for almost 140 years. These rustic throwbacks adjoin more comfortable cabins with modern amenities including electricity and plumbing. Cabins are in such demand that there is a waiting list of some ten years for summer rentals.[3]
The Great Auditorium always has been known for its excellent acoustics, and over the years has featured famed hymn writer Fanny Crosby, band leader John Philip Sousa, and tenor Enrico Caruso. More recently, singers Tony Bennett, Mel Tormé and Ray Charles have performed, and organist Virgil Fox gave his last solo concert in the building in 1980.[3]
The Auditorium remains the focus of cultural life in Ocean Grove. Concerts fill the summer schedule with star-studded attractions. [16] Among them are the acclaimed Summer Stars chamber music programs, which bring some of the finest classical musicians from Philadelphia and New York each Thursday night in July and early August.[14] Saturday nights feature popular entertainment, including recent appearances by Johnny Mathis, Ronan Tynan, Linda Eder, comedian Bill Cosby, and Christian rock stars like Michael W. Smith, Nichole Nordeman, Hillsong United and Sonic Flood.
The Auditorium houses a magnificent pipe organ, one of the 25 largest in the world. Installed in 1908 by the innovative Robert Hope-Jones, the instrument's components have been rebuilt several times and expanded under resident organist Gordon Turk since he took his post in 1974. The organ now contains five manuals, 165 ranks, and over 10,000 pipes. He and guest concert organists play free recitals on most Wednesday evenings and Saturday afternoons in July and August.[14]
Since 1980, the Auditorium has hosted an annual memorial service for New Jersey law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. The service includes a full Honor Guard, bagpipe procession, and singing by state high school choirs (Princeton High School and the West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South choirs have performed in the past). Police, soldiers, National Guardsmen, executive-level officials, and typically the governor attend.
[edit] Civil union controversy
A same-sex couple filed a civil rights complaint with the New Jersey Division of Civil Rights against the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association in early 2007, claiming the Association discriminated against them by denying their request to hold a civil union ceremony in the Boardwalk Pavilion, which the Association owns and uses for Sunday services, concerts, and weddings. The complaint is the first in New Jersey since same-sex civil unions were recognized there in 2007, said a Division of Civil Rights spokesman.
Scott Hoffman, the Chief Administrative Officer of the Camp Meeting Association, was quoted as saying that the association considers the Pavilion to be as much of a religious structure as the Tabernacle or the Youth Temple and that it would not permit same-sex civil union ceremonies to be conducted there, arguing that this was the position of the United Methodist Church.[17]
A local advocacy group, Ocean Grove United[18], disputes this, contending that the issue involves public, not religious, property.[19] They contend that the beach and Boardwalk Pavilion are open to the public and that the Camp Meeting Association has accepted public funds for their maintenance and repairs. They also cite the Association's application to the State of New Jersey for monies under the state's "Green Acres Program", which encourages the use of private property for public recreation and provides a $500,000 annual property tax exemption. In their application for these funds, the Camp Meeting Association reportedly stated that the disputed areas were open to the public. U.S. Representative Frank Pallone, Jr. (Democrat), in whose Congressional district Ocean Grove is located, stated "they've taken state, federal and local funds by representing that they are open to the public."
In August, 2007, the Camp Meeting Association filed a federal suit to halt the state's investigation, on the grounds that the Methodist group's First Amendment rights were being infringed. New Jersey moved for dismissal, asking the federal government not to interfere in a state legal matter. On November 8, 2007, Judge Joel Pisano dismissed the motion by the Camp Meeting Association for an injunction that would have stopped the state's investigation.
Brian Raum, counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, a Christian conservative legal organization representing the Camp Meeting Association, argued that "disaster relief is available to anyone" in defending the use of public funds to repair the Great Auditorium when it was damaged in an hurricane. He said that the Methodist association had never represented itself as anything but a religious organization.
Complicating matters further is that the Camp Meeting Association gave up a degree of property ownership rights for the boardwalk and beach in the 19th century to avoid taxation:
OCEAN GROVE, June 4.--By a decision of the Monmouth County Board of Taxation handed down today Ocean Grove's $3,000,000 beach front, the property of the Camp Meeting Association, is to escape taxation. It was shown to the board by the association's legal representative, Samuel A. Patterson, that the valuable strip of land, with its board walk, had been dedicated years ago by the association as a public highway, and not therefore subject to taxation. ---The New York Times, June 5, 1908
[edit] Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of Ocean Grove include:
- Southside Johnny (1948-, as John Lyon), singer songwriter.[20]
[edit] References
- ^ a b American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Wayne T. Bell (2000). Images of America: Ocean Grove. Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0-7385-0425-4.
- ^ a b Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association website, accessed November 6, 2007.
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ Population Finder: Ocean Grove CDP, New Jersey. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
- ^ "The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 114.
- ^ Sullivan, Jospeh F. "OCEAN GROVE TRIES TO RETAIN IDEALS, BUT NOT SOME CIVIC BURDENS", The New York Times, August 22, 1982. Accessed November 6, 2007. "In 1979, however, the New Jersey Supreme Court found its charter unconstitutional because it decreed that in Ocean Grove the church shall be the state and the state shall be the church. Since then, Ocean Grove has had to disband its police department and municipal court and to rely more on its parent community, Neptune Township. It has also had to drop a series of Sunday blue laws designed to enforce observance of the Sabbath and take down the chains that blocked automobiles from its entrances on that day."
- ^ The Story of Ocean Grove. Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ Capuzzo, Jill P. " Civil Union Dispute Pits Methodist Retreat Against Gays Who Aided in Its Rebirth', The New York Times, September 3, 2007. Accessed April 8, 2008. "But since the end of the blue laws, the town once derided as Ocean Grave has seen a commercial rebirth, driven largely by gay-owned businesses."
- ^ Asbury Park Press, February15, 2007 http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080215/NEWS/802150383
- ^ Michelle Sahn, "New life at old hotel site", Asbury Park Press, March 23, 2006
- ^ Steven Froias (2008-01-27). Split Decision or technical knockout from the Planning Board?. Ocean Grove Record. Retrieved on 2008-02-06.
- ^ a b c d e Ocean Grove Summer Calendar of Events 2007. Ocean Grove, NJ: Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, 2007.
- ^ Bridgefest Beach Festival website
- ^ An Historic Theme Study of the New Jersey Heritage Trail Route: Religious Resorts, National Park Service. Accessed November 6, 2007. "Known for its fine acoustics, the auditorium has attracted the noted and the celebrated during its century of use, and remains the focus of cultural life in Ocean Grove."
- ^ Bowman, Bill. "Methodist group contends pavilion is part of church", Asbury Park Press, May 12, 2007. Accessed July 31, 2007.
- ^ Ocean Grove United Website
- ^ Bill Bowman, "Civil union denial spurs bias claim in Ocean Grove", Asbury Park Press, June 21, 2007
- ^ Minor, E. Kyle. "MUSIC; A Bar Band Once Again Takes to The Road", The New York Times, June 18, 2000. Accessed January 8, 2008. "That association was made in Mr. Lyon's youth, growing up Ocean Grove, N.J., half a mile from Asbury Park."
[edit] External links
- Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association official website – the founding organization
- Auditorium organ video
- Robert Hope-Jones and the building of the Auditorium organ
- Chautauqua Network
- Ocean Grove Chamber of Commerce
- Neptune Township website
- Ocean Grove Historical Society
- Ocean Grove Record
- Ocean Grove United website
- Ocean Grove, New Jersey is at coordinates Coordinates:
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