A History of Bradley Beach
Between Duck Creek (Sylvan Lake) and Goose Pond (Fletcher Lake), the land that would become Bradley Beach was mostly a dense scrub pine forest running up to the beach. Indigenous Lenape tribes seasonally took shellfish and fish from the coast, following the streams from their main trail four miles inland. In colonial times it was part of Shrewsbury township, then Ocean Township, with a few farms. Other than beachcombers, fishermen and oystermen, the coast was empty.
The 1860 census and contemporary maps show 13 people in two homesteads: the Howland and Brown families.
In the summer of 1869, a group of Methodists came to the wooded area north of Fletcher Lake and founded the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting, a pious alternative to the raucous Long Branch seaside resort. By 1870, when lot sales and prices took off, Methodist leader Bishop Simpson suggested securing the surrounding land to avoid it falling into the hands of anyone "not in sympathy with the enterprise."
In the winter of 1871, James Bradley, a New York brush manufacturer purchased Charles Rogers' land north of the Grove to Deal Lake which would become Asbury Park.
At the same time, William B. Bradner, a wholesaler of flour and other dry goods in Newark, purchased 56 acres of land along Fletcher Lake to the south from farmer Asher Brown, and Bradley bought the property from Britton Howland south to Sylvan Lake. Bradner immediately began plans for cottages in an area he called Ocean Park and filed maps with the County.
In 1886, Bradley donated land to the Camp Meeting Association at the corner of what became LaReine and Madison Avenues and had the Poland brothers move the old Dutch Reformed Church from Asbury Park to this site. This, the community's first Methodist 'Little Church in the Woods" served the rapidly growing population until the congregation raised sufficient funds to build a large, handsome Queen Anne-style church in 1900 designed by renowned architect, William C. Cottrell. The building served its congregation until 2015 and has recently been demolished.
Bradley was content to initially leave his land vacant, secure that he and Bradner would not imperil the purity of the Grove while he pumped capital into Asbury Park. Bradley also owned the beachfront which protected his investment in Asbury's commercial amusements. Bradner moved full time to Ocean Park where the family maintained a homestead through the 1990s. During his remaining years, Bradner sold off much of his land for building lots.
The US Post Office thought Ocean Park sounded too much like Ocean Beach (Belmar), so the name Bradley Beach was selected for the town name instead. Commercial activity grew along the Long Branch-Squan Turnpike – Main Street. William Paynter, with help from James Bradley built a building at 900 Main Street in 1893 that became a grocery store and housed the first post office.
Bradley Beach was incorporated by an act of the New Jersey Legislature and a subsequent vote of 137 citizens in March of 1893 to form a Mayor/Council Borough. In 1908 it added a small parcel of Neptune City to encompass its current footprint.
Large seasonal hotels became a large part of summer life with Lakensea and Beach View both dwarfed by Thomas Somer's 500 room LaReine Hotel built in 1900 on Ocean Avenue. It boasted all ocean view rooms, elevators, telephones in rooms, and two kitchens (one kosher). Bradley Beach was more welcoming to the growing immigrant population than some other Monmouth Shore resorts. Italian, Jewish, and Chinese vacationers from New York filled the rooming houses and hotels. Main Street was eventually filled end to end with restaurants, stores, and bakeries to service the summer visitors and full-time residents.
After James Bradley's death in 1921, his estate sold the beach to the town for $150,000. A large public pool complex was added in 1926 and it became an important part of the summer experience. In 1929, Bradley Beach became the first community in the USA to implement beach badges to swim at its popular beaches. The practice was quickly copied in Avon, Sea Girt, Belmar, and then all over the coast. Full-time residents hovered around 3,500 with ten times as many in the summer.
Jet travel, the building of the Interstate Highway system and the Garden State Parkway started the long decline of the hotel business in town for summer vacationers. By the early 1970s, families had largely abandoned nearby Asbury Park's amusements and sought more sanitized alternatives like Six Flags Great Adventure and Disneyworld. Bradley Beach's rooming houses aged, and the last hotel was razed in 1985.
But the lure of the sea never left. Community pride, and a concerted effort to revitalize downtown slowly transformed the town. Nostalgic establishments like The Palace Theater (1915), and Vic's Bar & Restaurant (1947) were mixed with new businesses. Historic homes were restored, real estate values soared, and the 4,300 residents of Bradley Beach, and its many visitors today enjoy its historical charm and summer appeal.
Mission Statement
The Bradley Beach Historical Society is a non-profit organization for the purpose of collecting and preserving local historical data and artifacts for the
education and enjoyment of present and future generations.
The Bradley Beach Historical Museum is located in the Carmen Biase Center next to Borough Hall. This multi-use space was closed for an extended time for repairs. A public exhibit showcasing the early history of Bradley Beach opened in December 2024 in conjunction with a holiday program featuring intergenerational oral histories of long- time Bradley families. Tours conducted by trained docents are available by appointment.
Email info@bbhistory.org for more information.
CLICK HERE to visit the BBHS Website