OCEAN GROVE, NEW JERSEY

'Ocean Grove' is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Neptune Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey. It is located on the Atlantic Ocean Jersey Shore, between Asbury Park to the north and Bradley Beach to the south. It is particularly noted for its abundant Victorian homes and has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places since 1977.
Ocean Grove was founded by the '''Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association''' in 1869 as a Methodist summer seashore community and it remains the longest-active camp meeting site in the United States.^[1]

Contents

Geography

Demographics

Governance

History

Today

The Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association

Programs

The Great Auditorium

Civil union controversy

References

External links

Geography

Ocean Grove is located at (40.211982, -74.009169).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 1.0 km² (0.4 mi²). 0.9 km² (0.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (10.00%) is water.
Frequent rail passenger service to New York City is provided by New Jersey Transit from nearby Asbury Park station. The nearest airport having scheduled commercial airline service is Newark Liberty International Airport, 45 miles north, although Monmouth Executive Airport for general aviation airplanes is just 6 miles distant.
Interstate 195 provides highway access to Ocean Grove from the New Jersey Turnpike, Philadelphia, and points west. The nearby Garden State Parkway connects Ocean Grove with points north and south, such as New York City and Atlantic City.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 4,256 people, 2,331 households, and 785 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 4,564.6/km² (11,956.5/mi²). There were 3,156 housing units at an average density of 3,384.8/km² (8,866.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 93.14% White, 3.95% African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.96% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.92% from other races, and 0.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.62% of the population.
There were 2,331 households out of which 10.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 23.6% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 66.3% were non-families. 56.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.67 and the average family size was 2.59.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 9.9% under the age of 18, 5.8% from 18 to 24, 33.5% from 25 to 44, 26.4% from 45 to 64, and 24.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 82.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.1 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $31,935, and the median income for a family was $58,583. Males had a median income of $38,389 versus $31,886 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $26,232. About 5.1% of families and 13.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.0% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.
However, as Ocean Grove is primarily a non-residential summer community, many residences are unoccupied during the winter months. Consequently, these statistics may not be representative of the actual population during the Summer.

Governance

The desire to develop a Christian seaside community for summer worship and relaxation lead Elwood H. Stokes, a Methodist minister from Philadelphia, and others to purchase a square mile of land fronting on the Atlantic Ocean. A state charter was issued to the newly formed Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association on March 3 1870, granting the 26 trustees (13 ministers and 13 lay persons) the authority to purchase and hold the one square mile of real estate comprising Ocean Grove, and to construct and maintain all necessary works to supply the town with utilities and other municipal services, including law enforcement.
Later, efforts to establish a separate borough of Ocean Grove were attempted many times. Ocean Grove was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 5, 1920, from portions of Neptune Township, but the the New Jersey Court of Errors and Appeals ruled the municipality unconstitutional on May 12, 1921, and the borough was dissolved as of June 16, 1921."The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 114.
Ocean Grove retained its independence until a court ruling in 1981 nullified the Camp Meeting Association’s municipal authority. At that time, Ocean Grove became part of Neptune Township, in Monmouth County, New Jersey. The Camp Meeting still owns all the land in town and leases it to homeowners and businesses for 99-year renewable terms. The Camp Meeting Association currently keeps its beach closed on Sunday mornings between 8:30 am and 12:30 pm and Ocean Grove is still "dry", that is, the sale of all alcoholic beverages is prohibited.

History

On July 31 1869, Reverend William B. Osborn, Reverend Elwood H. Stokes, and other Methodist ministers camped at a shaded, well-drained spot on New Jersey's seashore and decided to establish a permanent Christian camp meeting community called "Ocean Grove."
Drawing from the major population centers of New York City and Philadelphia, Ocean Grove became a popular destination during the growth of the camp meeting movement in post-Civil War America. Tents and an open-air wooden shelter, or "tabernacle", were erected in the 1870s, for the trainloads of visitors arriving by the New York and Long Branch Railroad after 1875. A well was dug to provide fresh water (the "Beersheba" well is still in existence, located a short distance from the site of the first tabernacle). A second, larger tabernacle was built in the 1880s and permanent structures began to be constructed. Streets were paved and given Biblical names, such as "Pilgrim Pathway" and "Mt. Tabor".
By the 1890s, the second tabernacle was also outgrown, and construction of the present Great Auditorium was completed in 1894 as Ocean Grove drew thousands of visitors each summer to its many programs. The Great Auditorium is a large structure supported by bridge-like iron trusses laid on stone foundations. Originally designed to accommodate crowds of as many as 10,000 people, the subsequent installation of theater-style cushioned seating in many sections reduced seating capacity to about 6,000. The building remains otherwise largely unchanged from its original design, even to a lighting system that utilized then-novel incandescent lights in rows adorning the varnished wood-panelled ceiling. At the front of the auditorium is a large illuminated American flag (c. 1916) which undulates with rows of flashing lights when turned on by the organist. Electric signs on both sides of the organ pipework admonish, "Holiness to the Lord" on the left, and "So be ye holy" on the right. On the central facade tower of the Auditorium is an illuminated "Memorial Cross" (erected at the end of WWII) facing the Atlantic Ocean.

Until Ocean Grove's municipal authority was folded into Neptune Township in 1981, it boasted a set of unique laws, including one that made it illegal on Sundays to have cars on the streets of Ocean Grove. This had a significant effect on the development of a close-knit community. People looking to get away for the weekend typically avoided the Grove (the beach was closed on Sunday, too). That meant the visitors were likely to be coming for a week-long visit or more. Most came to attend programs sponsored by the Camp Meeting.
President Ulysses S. Grant visited Ocean Grove during his time in office and made his last public appearance in this town. Other Presidents to speak on the grounds include James Garfield, William McKinley, Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and Richard Nixon. Also, British evangelist Gipsy Rodney Smith made several appearances at Ocean Grove when he came to America for his evangelistic campaigns. During the decades of the 1920s-1950s, Ocean Grove's population swelled during the summers with thousands of visitors each week.
During the 1960s–1980s, the town declined along with much of the New Jersey seashore, and was called pejoratively "Ocean Grave", due to the general air of decrepitude.

Today

Beginning in the 1990s and continuing to the present, Ocean Grove has experienced a dramatic increase in property values and there has been a considerable revival in the fortunes of the town, leading to a much less depressed community and the restoration of older hotel structures, many of which had deteriorated into Single Room Occupancy ("SRO") quarters.
As part of Ocean Grove's resurgence in recent years, a number of sidewalk cafés and shops along Main Avenue – the main business thoroughfare – now cater to visitors and seasonal residents. Plans were announced in 2006 for a major new hotel and condominium development on property which has been vacant since the 1970s, when the old "North End Hotel" – once Ocean Grove's largest – was damaged by fire and subsequently demolished in 1980. ^[2]

The Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association

Since its founding by the first president of the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, Elwood H. Stokes, the association's mission is to provide opportunities for spiritual birth, growth, and renewal in a Christian seaside setting. Its 2007 mission statement is:

"...rooted in its Methodist heritage, to provide opportunities for spiritual birth, growth and renewal through worship, education, cultural and recreational programs for persons of all ages in a Christian seaside setting."^[3]

The Camp Meeting Association's current president is Scott Rasmussen.

Programs

The Camp Meeting offers programs throughout the summer including contemporary and traditional worship services, youth drama programs, and Bible Hours. During the summer months, Sunday Worship Services are held at 10:30am and 7:30pm in the 6,000-seat Great Auditorium.
These services have brought such renowned preachers as Billy Graham, Norman Vincent Peale, Billy Sunday, Ralph W. Sockman, Tony Campolo, James A. Forbes, D. James Kennedy, and Charles Stanley, to name a few. The annual Choir Festival, held one Sunday in July for over 50 years, brings approximately 1,400 church choir singers from all over the Northeast to join in singing "to the glory of God."
A contemporary worship service, ''Pavilion Praise'', is held on the beach at the "Boardwalk Pavilion", at 9am on Sunday mornings.
Another reflection of the camp meeting roots are the 114 tents which surround the Great Auditorium. These seasonal residences, occupied from May to September, have adjacent cabins provided with electricity and plumbing and are much in demand – so much so that those seeking to lease one for a summer may have to wait 10 years.
Youth programs include music and dramatics at the ''Youth Temple'', along with the weekday ''Breakfast Club'' for teens and ''Riptide'' for younger children. ''Bridgefest'', a Saturday beach event in August, offers contemporary Christian music for young people and their families, promoted by New York-area radio station "The Bridge 89.7" (WRDR-FM).^[4]

The Great Auditorium

Besides the town's many Victorian homes, the 6,000-seat Great Auditorium, a formidable wooden structure constructed in 1894, is Ocean Grove's most prominent building. It encompasses an area larger than a football field and faces Ocean Pathway (once listed as one of the ten most beautiful streets in America) and serves as the centerpiece of the summer programs. Known for its excellent acoustics, the Auditorium is the site of numerous concerts and popular entertainment shows as well as religious services.
There is an acclaimed classical series of chamber music on Thursday evenings in July and early August. The Auditorium also houses a magnificent pipe organ, one of the 25 largest in the world. Installed by the innovative organ builder Robert Hope-Jones in 1908, the instrument's components were rebuilt in 1934 and again in 1969. The organ has been enlarged to include over 9,000 pipes (165 ranks) under the direction of Resident Organist Gordon Turk, who (along with guest concert organists) plays recitals Wednesday evenings and Saturday afternoons during the months of July and August.
Saturday nights are for popular entertainment, including recent appearances by Ronan Tynan, Linda Eder, comedian Bill Cosby,and Christian rock stars such as Michael W. Smith, Nichole Nordeman, Hillsong United and Sonic Flood.
Famed hymn writer Fanny Crosby was a frequent visitor in the 19th century. Tenor Enrico Caruso, singers Tony Bennett, Mel Tormé, and Ray Charles, and organist Virgil Fox, who gave his last solo concert in the building in 1980, are only a few of the legendary performing artists who have appeared there as well.
Annually, for the past 27 years, a memorial service for fallen New Jersey Law Enforcement Officials has been held in the Great Auditorium. Every law enforcer killed in the line of duty in the history of New Jersey is honored every year, with the most recently fallen individuals especially recognized. The service includes a full Honor Guard, bagpipe procession, and singing by state high school choirs (Princeton High School and the West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South choirs have performed in the past). Police, soldiers, National Guardsmen, executive-level officials, and typically the governor attend every year.

Civil union controversy

A same-sex couple filed a civil rights complaint with the New Jersey Division of Civil Rights against the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association in early 2007, claiming the Association discriminated against them by denying their request to hold a civil union ceremony in the Boardwalk Pavilion, which the Association owns and uses for Sunday services, concerts, and weddings. The complaint is the first in New Jersey since same-sex civil unions were recognized there in 2007, said a Division of Civil Rights spokesman.
An official of the Camp Meeting Association was quoted as saying that the association considers the Pavilion to be as much of a religious structure as the Tabernacle or the Youth Temple and that it would not permit same-sex civil union ceremonies to be conducted there, arguing that this was the position of the United Methodist Church.^[5]
A local advocacy group, Ocean Grove United^[6], disputes this, contending that the issue involves public, not religious, property.^[7] They contend that the beach and Boardwalk Pavilion are open to the public and that the Camp Meeting Association has accepted public funds for their maintenance and repairs. They also cite the Association's application to the State of New Jersey for monies under the state's "Green Acres Program", which encourages the use of private property for public recreation and provides a $500,000 annual property tax exemption. In their application for these funds, the Camp Meeting Association reportedly stated that the disputed areas were open to the public. U.S. Representative Frank Pallone, Jr. (Democrat), in whose Congressional district Ocean Grove is located, stated "they've taken state, federal and local funds by representing that they are open to the public."
In August, 2007, the Camp Meeting Association filed a federal suit to halt the state's investigation, on the grounds that the Methodist group's First Amendment rights were being infringed. New Jersey moved for dismissal, asking the federal government not to interfere in a state legal matter. A hearing is scheduled for October 1, 2007.^[8].
Brian Raum, counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, a Christian conservative legal organization representing the Camp Meeting Association, argued that "disaster relief is available to anyone" in defending the use of public funds to repair the Great Auditorium when it was damaged in an hurricane. He said that the Methodist association had never represented itself as anything but a religious organization.

References

1. Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association website, accessed April 24, 2007.
2. Michelle Sahn, "New life at old hotel site", Asbury Park ''Press'', March 23 2006
3. ''Ocean Grove Summer Calendar of Events 2007''. Ocean Grove, NJ: Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, 2007.
4. Bridgefest Beach Festival website
5. Bowman, Bill. "Methodist group contends pavilion is part of church", ''Asbury Park Press'', May 12, 2007. Accessed July 31, 2007.
6. Ocean Grove United Website
7. Bill Bowman, "Civil union denial spurs bias claim in Ocean Grove", ''Asbury Park Press'', June 21, 2007
8. Jill P. Capuzzo, "Civil Union Dispute Pits Methodist Retreat Against Gays Who Aided in Its Rebirth", ''New York Times'', September 3, 2007

External links

★ Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association official website – the founding organization

★ Auditorium organ video

★ Chautauqua Network

★ Ocean Grove Chamber of Commerce

★ Neptune Township website

★ Ocean Grove Historical Society

★ Ocean Grove ''Record''

★ Ocean Grove United website