The first bridge to carry automobile traffic into Ocean City was approved by the Maryland General Assembly in 1916 but did not officially open until July 4, 1919. Known to locals as the “State Roads Bridge,” it had a single lane in each direction. It crossed the Sinepuxent Bay at its most narrow point and… Read more »
John Dale Showell, Jr. built Ocean City’s first swimming pool in 1917. Located on the Boardwalk between N. Division and Caroline streets, it was a salt water pool with water pumped in from the ocean.Showell charged 25 cents to swim in the pool and cleaned it once a week, refilling it at night. The beach… Read more »
The Breakers Hotel was built circa 1904 on the southwest corner of 3rd Street and the Boardwalk and at the time was one of the northernmost hotels in Ocean City.The Breakers, like most of the hotels of the era, operated on the American Plan (meals included with room) and did so up into the early 1950s…. Read more »
Ocean City’s Fireboat 1 fought its first fire about 200 yards off the beach at 10th Street on Aug. 31, 2018. This 46-foot sportfishing boat, the Seawitch, was on fire and hundreds of beachgoers watched as smoke and flames poured from the stricken vessel.Two people aboard were rescued by the charter boat Salty Sons, which… Read more »
Fager’s Island was the first bar and restaurant on the bayside in what was then the growing midtown area of Ocean City in 1975.John Fager changed the look of the typical local bar scene by adding large glass windows and a magnificent view of the Assawoman Bay at sunset. He combined good music and fine… Read more »
Aug. 3, 1986 was one of the most tragic days in Ocean City’s history.During a violent afternoon thunderstorm, a lightning bolt struck the beach at 2nd Street leaving three dead and two injured, one of them critically (he would die the next day at Peninsula Regional Medical in Salisbury).The deceased were all from Washington, DC… Read more »
Ocean City has had its share of colorful characters over the years. The blind musicians Tex, with his 10-gallon hat, and Shorty, with his banjo and dog Mandy; “Pop” Wendling with over 200 Popeye tattoos and his novelty joke shop; and the late Boardwalk Elvis (who passed away this year) were just a few of… Read more »
Ocean City north of 15th Street was mostly undeveloped from there to the Delaware line in the late 1940s. There was, however, a small community known to locals as “Maryland Fenwick” in the area of today’s 141st Street (known at that time as Lea Avenue). There were approximately 50 cottages and a general store, which… Read more »
Ocean City in 1915 was a small village with about 600 residents. Most of the men worked as commercial fishermen or on the railroad while the women managed the hotels and boarding houses. The tourist season ran from mid-June to Labor Day and there was no off-season. The hotels closed after Labor Day and the… Read more »
For nearly 40 years, Dale’s Esso Center was the first thing people saw when entering Ocean City.The gas station at the foot of the Route 50 Bridge was one of just a handful of local businesses to stay open year-round in the 1940s and 1950s.William Dale started the business in 1941 but it was taken… Read more »
