No. 109

“PHOTO VIEW LOOKING SOUTH AND SHOWING LARGE CROWD ON BEACH AT 96th STREET, STONE HARBOR, N. J.” – When I located this great beach scene image taken about 1925 and residing in the Stone Harbor Museum archives, I knew it looked most familiar.  Of course this writer quickly proceeded to check his post card collection, and sure enough, there were several post cards showing almost an identical scene taken on the Stone Harbor beach.  As you can see this photograph was professionally mounted by the Ocean City, N. J. photographer named W. H. Mowen.  It’s a wonderful moment in time that was captured on film in the early 1920s.  Someone with knowledge of a few of the persons specifically depicted in this very beach scene photo has typed in the names of some of the people.  The photographer snapped this scene while standing on the walkway at 96th Street and the beach on the inclined ramp leading up to the boardwalk which is shown in the background.  Here are the names and information provided by some unnamed source: “Group standing:  Daddy, Mother, Ellen, Mildred, Mable, Jane, Aunt Hilda, Grayson John Davis”.  Since we have no idea just where those 8 individually named persons are actually situated in this particular photo, we therefore cannot identify and actually point them out to you.

Now I am showing you two more images.  The first photograph was cropped and extracted from the framed image shown at the outset of this account.  If you look very carefully, you should be able to barely discern the building located on the boardwalk in the distant background.  Actually the structure was known as the Casino and it soon was re-purposed and became a popular apartment house with several living units available for rent during the summer season.  For your information the Casino was located at 98th Street.

This next and final image is somewhat easier on the eyes as it is derived from a color post card published and in general use in the early 1920s and well into the 1930s.  Now look at these two images concurrently, one above the other, and recognize the commonality between the two.  However they are not actually the same identical photo, but rather just a bit different with most notably some of the persons either missing or situated just a bit differently when compared.  My guess is that perhaps only seconds or less than a minute’s time had passed between the time these two photos were taken.  Interestingly, one of them becomes a post card that was actually published by David Troxel, well known variety store owner located at 96th and Second Avenue.  I wonder just who the photographer was who took these very photos?  Just food for thought!  So don’t forget to “smile” and say “cheese”, for you just never know if the photo you pose for just might end up being printed on a very popular picture post card and sold for many years at our favorite seashore resort – Stone Harbor!