The area
surrounding the Barnegat Bay and Barnegat Inlet were described by Henry
Hudson, in 1609, as "...a great lake of water, as we could judge it to
be ... The mouth of the lake hath many shoals, and the sea breaketh on
them as it is cast out of the mouth of it." The name of the existing
town was obtained from the Bay and Inlet, which were originally named in
1614 "Barendegat," or "Inlet of the Breakers," by Dutch settlers,
referring to the waterway's turbulent channel.
On October 26, 1782, a Belgian cutter traveling southward became
stranded near the inlet. The ship was noticed by Captain Andrew
Steelman, whom recruited local men to unload the cargo. While at rest on
the beach, the crews were attacked by Captain John Bacon, who was
affiliated with the Loyalists. Almost all of Steelman's men were
murdered in what became known as the Barnegat Light Massacre.
In 1795, the first permanent settler - Caleb Parker -- arrived to the
Barnegat Inlet area. By the 19th century, the northern stretches of
Long Beach Island were known among early settlers for the wildlife and
subsequent hunting, as well as a tourist destination for vacationing
farmers and campers. In 1814, portions of the lowlands and beaches were
purchased by settlers Bart and Ruth Slaight, who built a small house and
later, in 1825, a larger home to accommodate boarders. The
boardinghouse was later sold to Jacob Herring, which prompted the
structure to become known as the Herring House. The building lodged many
of the visiting hunters, who primarily came from New YOrk City and
Philadelphia. Nearly a decade later, in 1834, Slaight sold five acres of
land to the United States Federal Government under the stipulation that
no stores or taverns may be built, nor could the lands be used for
cattle.
The first lighthouse tower was built in 1835 to coincide with the
increased economic dependence on the inlet. Whaling had been permitted
in the area in 1678, timber was often freighted through from sawmilles
on the mainland, and Cranberry Inlet (opened in 1750 to provide a
shortcut for cargo ships) had recently been closed.
Barnegat Light Real Estate: Brownsville
In 1855, John M. Brown bought
much of the land that makes up present-day Barnegat Light. This purchase
included the acquisition of Herring House, which was renamed Ashley
House. The first official name of the community thus became Brownsville.
During this time, a house of refuge was built to provide an
unmanned shelter for shipwreck victims. Despite several attempts at
constructing jetties, the powerful tides caused considerable erosion of
the beaches and threatened both Barnegat Lighthouse and later the
Oceanic Hotel. The lighthouse collapsed into the sea in 1857 and a
replacement lighthouse (already under construction in 1857) was
completed in 1859.
The Brown family left the island after John Brown's son drowned at
sea. The Brown family's land was sold at auction in 1869, and in 1874,
Ashley House was sold to Charles Martin. The United States Life-Saving
Service built Station #17 in the area circa 1872. Around approximately
1875, the general store and post office were constructed near the
intersection of 4th Street and Central Avenue. The general store was
originally run by Lucrecia Buttersworth and provided limited supplies --
largely due to the difficulty with transporting merchandise to the
shop. The general store was purchased by the Applegate family in 1919 --
the family of a lighthouse keeper who was also a net fisherman.
Barnegat Light Real Estate: Barnegat City
In 1881, the
Barnegat City Improvement Company was formed by Benjamin Franklin
Archer, prompting the name of the community to unofficially become
Barnegat City. Adding "city" helped the new resort town capitalize on
the success of Atlantic City. The plan succeeded, as the city became a
popular tourist destination -- primarily for vacationers from New
York City, who would travel by train to Toms River and then travel by
boat to Barnegat City. The SS Hesse -- a ship chartered by the
Pennsylvania Railroad -- began providing transport in to Barnegat City
for passengers largely originating from New York City and Trenton. This
ship was later replaced by the Connetquot. The Oceanic Hotel was
built to meet the increasing lodging demands of the tourism industry,
beginning construction in 1881 and completing construction in 1882. The
hotel would later be relocated in response to encroaching waters, so-as
to avoid a similar fate as the first Barnegat Lighthouse.
The Ashley House was sold to John Warner Kinsey in 1882, who
renamed the building as the eponymous Kinsey Hotel. Kinsey would later
move to nearby Harvey Cedars, abandoning the hotel. A new hotel, the
Sans Souci, was built in 1883 with the intention of attracting winter
sportsmen. A fourth hotel, The Social, opened to boarders in 1884.
Between 1884 and 1886, a direct railroad connection was completed to
increase the city's tourism capabilities. The first train reached
Barnegat City on June 28, 1886. A large keeper's house was completed in
1889 by the Federal Lighthouse Bureau to house the three keepers and
their families. In 1899, Benjamin Archer sold the Sans Souci, which was
subsequently renamed the Sunset Hotel. During the Spanish-American War,
the United States Life-Saving Service kept watch for enemy ships and a
signal house was constructed offshore; but the signal house was complete
shortly after the peace was declared.
Barnegat City became of part of Long Beach Township after the
township's establishment in 1899. Five years later, in 1904, the city
declared itself an independent borough. At this time, much of the
northern area of Long Beach Island was undeveloped, causing citizens to
feel separated from the rest of the township's communities.
In 1914, the Oceanic Hotel closed and the Sunset Hotel was purchased
by John Barber. Also in the same year, an automobile bridge was opened
further south, improving access between the island and the mainland. In
1920, Ketzel's Bar was opened on West 7th Street by Paul Ketzel. This
location provided rooms to local fisherman and was the prominent
location in the city for nighttime entertainment. The bar was later
purchased by "Ma" Kubel, resulting in the new name Kubel's Bar -- a
restaurant which continues to exist today. The bar began serving meals
in a dining room addition and was known for its local parties featuring
Norwegian dancing.
Also in 1920, a severe winter storm destroyed most of the Oceanic
Hotel as well as a large portion of the beaches -- eroding the shore up
to the base of the lighthouse and prompting the abandonment and removal
of the keeper's house by the United States Lighthouse Service. The
destruction of the hotel and continued erosion of the beaches caused the
resort to become less popular -- ultimately resulting in the
discontinuation of train service to the city between 1923 and 1926.
Barnegat City returned to its relatively secluded environment that it
had experienced in its earlier days.
The city's fishery economy improved beginning with a fishery opened
by Captain Dick Myers in 1920, whom the next year purchased 33 acres
between West 7th Street and the bay. In 1927, several Scandinavian
fisherman united to form the Independent Fishery. During this period,
Gillnetting declined in popularity, but it would later gain a comeback
in the 1950s. Also in the 1950s, dragger fishing was ended and
tilefishing began.
Viking VillageThe Scandinavian fisherman founded the Independent Dock, which is now
known as Viking Village and, today, provides a combined shopping
and industrial establishment with both handcrafted goods and fresh
seafood. Catches typically consist of scallops, tuna, swordfish,
tilefish, weakfish, bluefish, shad, dogfish, and various other types of
in-shore fish. In the 1960s and 1970s, foreign trawlers were permitted
to fish in the area. This has resulted in nearly all of the cod to have
been fished out of the area. Of particular interest is that the scallop
boat Lindsay L, docked at Viking Village, was used in the movie The
Perfect Storm.
A series of disasters in the area occurred during the 1930s,
beginning with the destruction of the Sunset Hotel by fire in June 1932.
The next year, the Airship USS Akron crashed in the sea near
Barnegat Light. Two years later, in 1935, the railroad bridge located to
the south washed out, resulting in the complete discontinuation of
railroad service to all of Long Beach Island.
Barnegat Light
In 1948, Barnegat City was
renamed as Barnegat Light. The motivations for this renaming were both
to honor the legacy of the lighthouse (which was decommissioned four
years earlier) and also to disambiguate itself from nearby Barnegat
Township. In 1950, the post office moved from the Applegate general
store's location to a new location on 18th Street. The building it
replaced had itself been a general store and a gas station, both owned
by Jens Jensen in 1920; whom had given it to John Englesen in 1940 as a
trade for a house on 19th Street. The post office remained at this
location until its current location on 10th Street was opened. The site
of the first post office, at the general store on 4th Street, remains
today as the Inlet Deli.
The continued threat of storms such as the Ash Wednesday Storm of
1962 reinforced concerns about the stability of Barnegat Light's
beaches. The construction of the existing jetty in the 1990s added a
significant amount of land to the town, much of which was designated as
parkland and now includes a bird sanctuary. The jetty has provided
stabilization to the shoreline along the inlet, but requires
frequent dredging. In addition to the lighthouse, the town continues to
maintain a United States Coast Guard station, reflecting the continued
presence of the former United States Life-Saving Service. In line with
the town's history, its most prominent industries continue to be tourism
and fishing.
Barnegat Light Local Government
Barnegat Light is governed
under the Borough form of New Jersey Government. The governing body
consists of a Mayor and a six-member Borough Council. The Mayor is
directly chosen by the electorate for a four-year term. Members of the
Borough Council serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two
seats coming up for election each year.
Barnegat Light Education
In 1903, the city's first and
only school was built, consisting of a single room. The one-room school
was later closed in 1951.
For grades K through 6, public school students attend the Long Beach
Island Consolidated School District, which serves students from
Barnegat Light, Harvey Cedars, Long Beach Township, Ship Bottom and Surf
City. Schools in the district are Ethel Jacobsen School in Surf City
with 132 students in grades Kindergarten - 2 and Long Beach Island Grade
School in Ship Bottom with 135 students in grades 3 - 6.
Students in public school for grades 7 through 12 attend the
Southern Regional Middle School (grades 7 and 8) and Southern Regional
High School (grades 9 - 12). These schools are part of the Southern
Regional School District, which serves the five municipalities in the
Long Beach Island Consolidated School District, along with students from
Beach Haven, Stafford Township and Ocean Township who attend as part of
sending/receiving relationships. Both schools are in Manahawkin.
