Atlantic City Boardwalk History and the Steel Pier

Atlantic City, New Jersey was once a remote island called Absegami by the Native American Lenni-Lenapes. Dr. Jonathan Pitney came to town in the early 1850s and immediately recognized the potential for a health resort where people from the big cities could “escape for a breath of fresh air.” In 1853 the resort got its official name – Atlantic City. A railroad route was constructed connecting Camden to the area and it wasn’t long before huge hotels replaced small beach cottages. A walkway of planks connected the hotels so guests did not have to walk in the sand. The walkway was the humble beginning of the famous Atlantic City Boardwalk - the hottest piece of property on the board in the popular Monopoly Game. Today, the Atlantic City Boardwalk is 40 feet wide, extends almost five miles along the beach and is the central artery for action in Atlantic City. In March of 1854, the city was incorporated and eighteen voters elected the first mayor, Chalkey S. Leeds. On July 1, 1854, the first public train left Camden for Atlantic City, arriving two-and-a-half hours later, to signal the opening chapter in the resort's rich and colorful history.

From the start Atlantic City drew a cast of characters and eccentric entertainment. There was a high diving horse that plunged from a platform into the ocean. For many years, Mr. Peanut greeted visitors at the Planters Peanut store. There were fortune tellers and flimflam artists. Entertainment piers stretching into the ocean were lined with amusement rides, animal attractions and artisans. The carnival atmosphere, called the Boardwalk Ballyhoo, is documented at the Atlantic City Historical Museum. In 1921, a beauty queen contest was held to extend the tourist season and the Miss America Pageant was born.
From the 1880s to 1940s, Atlantic City was a major vacation resort. In the 1920s it was considered the premier tryout town for theatrical productions headed for Broadway and beyond. Beginning in the 1930s and continuing in the next three decades, Kentucky Avenue was renown for its nightlife, with Club Harlem and other venues attracting the best talent and biggest stars from the world of jazz. During World War II, the city offered much more than entertainment distractions, as it served as a training site for military recruits and a recovery and rehabilitation center for wounded soldiers.
In the 1960s a popular television dance show named Summertime on the Pier was broadcast in the summer months from the Marine Ballroom at the end of Atlantic City's famous Steel Pier.  The Steel Pier in Atlantic City, New Jersey, was a mile-long structure that got its name from its steel underpinnings, the rest being largely made of wood. For many years it was home to a variety of entertainments for the holidaymakers who descended on the resort, as well as for the local population.
Opened in 1898 with cowgirl Annie Oakley as the star attraction, the Steel Pier was known as "The Showplace of the Nation", featuring an amusement park with high-diving horses, water-skiing dogs and human cannonballs, exhibits and sideshows. It was used as a venue for live music, and also played host to the Miss America pageant.  During the heyday of Vaudeville, Atlantic City was the “in” place to play for the rich and famous. Today over 37 million visitors come to Atlantic City, New Jersey each year to try their luck at the gaming tables, enjoy top-name entertainment and escape the doldrums of the everyday world. Acts who performed on the Steel Pier over the years included everyone from Al Jolson, Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra to the Rolling Stones and Smokey Robinson. Jazz bands of the swing era also featured regularly.