But there is much more to the story. In fact, a surprising number of structures from the late-19th century and early 1900's still dot the side streets of 5 Mile Beach, as if hidden in plain sight.
In her new book, "Wildwoods Houses Through Time" (Fonthill Media), lifelong Wildwood resident Taylor Henry dives into the history of these older, overlooked homes, revealing a different side of local history.
"Most people know about the 1950's Doo Wop history, but they don’t know people were here in the 1800s," explained Henry, a recent graduate of and adjunct faculty member at Rowan University, as well as a board member of the Wildwood Historical Society. "I wanted to show how a lot of early history is still here, which is why I documented houses that are still standing rather than ones that were demolished.
"I also wanted to advocate for preservation. Too many times, all that’s left of a historic place is a photo in a filing cabinet at a historical society, and I feel it would be a cultural loss if any of these houses were also reduced to the same fate."
According to Henry, the concept came together quickly. In December 2017, while she was volunteering at the George F. Boyer Museum on Pacific Avenue, the historical society was contacted by Fontill Media. The publishing firm was seeking historians to contribute to its "America Through Time" series.
Henry was inspired by the possibilities of a project that could combine many of her interests: history, architecture, research, storytelling and photography. She pitched her idea, which Fonthill instantly approved, and was off and running.
"I already knew some houses I wanted to include," she explained, "but I also did a lot of posting on social media and dropping letters in peoples’ mailboxes to find homeowners who wanted to tell me the history of their homes."
A simple, but still-daunting challenge Henry faced was deciding which houses to include. With limited space and more historic houses in the area than most realize, narrowing the list down was no easy task.
"Another challenge was being confident to keep writing," Henry said. "At times I thought my idea was ridiculous, that people would argue that old houses are not worth the trouble. I felt silly comparing Wildwood to Cape May, and I wondered if my book would even sell.
"What motivated me to keep writing was the homeowners who told me how thankful they were that someone was documenting their stories, then telling me they would be buying several copies of the book as Christmas presents for all their relatives."
The book has sold very well according to Amazon.com, even making it to #1 in the House and Hotel Photography categories shortly after publication.
For Henry, the creation process was also a learning experience, filled with fascinating finds and suprises that she hopes to share with her readers.
"By looking through files and directories at the historical society, I found so many interesting stories about these houses," she explained. "U.S. presidents have stayed in some. Many were built by someone who died on the Titanic, and one was built by someone who missed the Titanic and became head of the local bank.
"Many houses were built by fishermen who came from Scandinavia. The houses are so closely tied to the times when they were built. It’s amazing how little our history is talked about, when honestly, our history is as rich as Cape May’s.
"This project made me appreciate how much of a variety of architecture we have that is even older than Doo Wop. Architects have studied our Victorian houses and determined they should be preserved. Sadly, it didn’t happen and many were lost. It’s the people who bought these houses and cherished them who are keeping this history alive."
"Wildwood Houses Through Time" is available at local bookstores and online at Amazon.com (currently listed at $17.00).
