Ocean Grove, NJ, has been known for over two centuries for tent camping. You can learn more about the wonderful town, which is a step into the past and a National and State Historic District of Victorian Homes and unique tent homes. Read other articles about this coast town.
Board walks were laid each spring for healthful walks in the salt air. In the early years The Camp Association literally rolled up the sidewalks at the end of the camp season so they would not rot in the winter moisture! Today the quiet town is the only one of the Camp Meeting towns whose spirit and tents survive. In 1887 railings and electric light poles were installed on the more permanent boardwalks. Christian Camp Meetings in old revival style attracted thousands of visitors for the summer. In 1900 there were 5,000 bedrooms for rent. But the “permanent” resident campers obtained 99 year leases for their plots for $10.90 to erect their large canvas tents, which are still in use today, some in their fourth generation, handed down within the families.
I was fortunate enough to be invited into a tent home to see the lovely interior. The bedroom and living area are under the canvas. Each tent is permitted to attach a small wooden shed, which has a tiny kitchen and bathroom and an area in which to store the tent during the winter. Owners are required to have their tents erected and beautified with hanging baskets, colorful awnings, and other lovely landscaping by May fifteenth. And owners must remove and stow their tents after Columbus Day. When I asked how anyone has any privacy with just canvas walls a resident said with a smile, “Long ago folks figured out if they had a disagreement they better take it across the lake to settle. And when we hear heavy breathing at night we just say it’s ‘Methodist Asthma’!”
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