Ocean City originally consisted of 50 acres between the Sinepuxent Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. The name Ocean City was chosen for the new town in August 1874 by the stockholders of the Atlantic Hotel Company and in 1875 the site was surveyed by Daniel G. Hudson while standing on the mainland.
The property was divided into 204 building lots with the east-west streets named after Eastern Shore counties beginning with Worcester Street and going to Caroline Street. The north-south avenues were named after cities — Baltimore, Philadelphia, and St. Louis — while what we know today as the Boardwalk was (and still is) officially designated as Atlantic Avenue.
The first hotel — the original Atlantic Hotel — opened on July 4th 1875 and a railroad bridge was completed across the Sinepuxent Bay in 1876. Both can be seen in this circa 1879 print.
Photo courtesy of Bob Stevens