Nostalgia, History and Memories

This corner of the website is here for you to learn about and remember some of Seaside's past. Those of us that are lucky enough to have spent time with our family in and around Seaside, either as a child or as a parent, have fond memories of a Seaside Heights that has partially been left behind. In many ways the beach and boardwalk are still the same. Yet buildings have come and gone, rides have been taken away and replaced with others, and some stores have changed names or their line of business numerous times over the years.

These history and memories pages will grow as we learn more and get more input from others. If you have a story, picture or even a short anecdote you would like to share please let us know. You can find out how to submit content here.

A newer section of the site that can really use your input is the "What was the..." page. A lot of people have memories about Seaside Heights but cannot remember a detail - a name, a building or whatever - and they would like to have a detail filled in. If you have something like that, you can submit something like you find here or just leave a comment on that page.

Seaside Heights 1960's Promotional Film

Let's start with a film from 1960 that was rediscovered in 2008. I should mention it is almost 17 minutes long. You may want to go get a cup of coffee before you start watching the film.

The town of Seaside Heights released this statement about the film:

"This promotional film of Seaside Heights from 1960 was discovered by Peter J. Smith, Director of the Seaside Heights Office of Public Relations in May 2008, and was converted to modern video format by Joe Verderosa of Greenrose Media and is now posted on youtube.com to be enjoyed worldwide.

Peter had seen this film once before in his life as a child, when it was shown by Mr. Hugh J. Boyd, Principal of the namesake school in Seaside Heights. Working for Seaside Heights as an adult, and feeling the film reel must be somewhere, Peter spent five years looking for it inside the Borough Hall. Several other films were found from the past over the years, but none had been “it”.

One day, Peter had to reach high on a shelf to retrieve a box of 8 radios. However, the box only had 7 radios inside. This made him grab a stepladder and look for the missing eighth radio. The radio was found in the far back of the highest shelf, on top of a reel of film, which turned out to be the long-lost Sun and Fun promo footage in pristine condition. We like to think that the spirit of 12-term Seaside Heights Mayor J. Stanley Tunney, who appears in this film, and is believed to occasionally make a paranormal visit to the Borough Hall, led us to this valuable piece of history.”

Seaside Heights 1970's Promotional Film

The response to posting this film on YouTube resulted in so many views, the town decided to release a second vintage Seaside Heights tourism film.
Here is the second film to be released. Check out those styling fashions!

Please feel free to leave a comment below.